Blood Moon
by Tori of Lorien
Summary: Due to tragedy, Alice Brandon moved to Forks with an empty heart. But will a mysterious golden-eyed boy help her to become whole again, or be the death of her? Alice’s version of Twilight. Alice/Jasper, all normal pairings. Full summary inside. Complete!
1. Preface: Missing Person

**Blood Moon**

**Summary**: _Blood moon_- derives from the English Medieval and the Neo Pagan name for a full moon in December. "How was I supposed to know that a boy with blond hair and beautiful golden eyes with a deadly secret was to become my whole world… and prove to be the most dangerous relationship of my life?" Due to tragedy, Alice Brandon moved to Forks with an empty heart. But will a mysterious golden-eyed boy help her to become whole again, or be the death of her? Alice's version of _Twilight_. Alice/Jasper, all normal pairings… eventually.

**Rating**: T

**Genre**: Romance/Drama

**Disclaimer**: The characters in this multi-chapter story are not mine, nor are any of the events from _Twilight_. They all belong to Stephenie Meyer. I just changed things up a bit for the purpose of this story.

**A/N**: Okay! I'm glad you guys are liking all the oneshots I've been posting lately. This is going to be my first Alice/Jasper centered multi-chapter story. And as I said in the summary, it's Alice's version of the _Twilight_ story, so she is human and Jasper is vampire. Edward and Emmett are Alice's brothers, so they are also human, and Rosalie and Bella are vampires. This isn't exactly like the book since I don't believe Alice would meet Jasper in the same way as Bella and Edward yet, but some of the events are similar. The song I used in this update is "Missing Person" by Michael W. Smith (which I also don't own). So, I hope you guys enjoy this! It's the first time I've done something like this, so no flames please! I will also update the first chapter since this preface really doesn't give you too much. Enjoy!

_Preface-Missing Person_

_"Under a lavender moon_

_So many powers consume me_

_Who dimmed the glowing light_

_That once burned so bright in me?_

Is this a radical phase

_A problematical age_

_That keeps me running _

_From all that I used to be?_

_Is there a way to return?_

Is there a way to unlearn

_That carnal knowledge_

_That's chipping away at my soul?_

I've been gone too long

_Will I ever find my way home?"_

I was an empty shell when I moved to Forks, Washington with my brothers after the death of my parents two years ago. How was I supposed to know that a boy with blond hair and beautiful golden eyes with a deadly secret was to become my whole world… and prove to be the most dangerous relationship of my life? I never liked horror stories, except for one exception, but now I found myself in one with _him_ being the one exception.

But though it's dangerous, my life now has meaning. He has saved me more than he knows, filling the role of the missing person in my life. I don't mind that my very life is now in danger, as long as he's by my side.

After all, death wouldn't be a high price to pay to spend eternity with an angel.


	2. Chapter 1: Visions of Him

**Disclaimer**: Nope, these characters still aren't mine since I'm not Stephenie Meyer.

**A/N**: All right, just as I promised after that short preface, here's chapter one! As a fun note, I actually based Alice off of me for a lot of these situations, so it was pretty easy to write. And just as a reminder, Alice, Edward, and Emmett are humans while the rest of the Cullens are vampires. This is from Alice's POV, even though there will be some points that the story is from Jasper's POV. But for now, this is Alice's POV. So, enjoy! No flames please!

_Chapter 1- Visions of Him_

I stood beneath the steady downpour of the shower, closing my eyes as I took a deep, steadying breath. I tilted my head back, allowing the drops to fall onto my face, but the hot water wasn't even enough to distract myself from the face that refused leave my thoughts.

He was young and handsome with blond hair and beautiful but strange golden eyes. I felt as though I knew him from somewhere and that he was an important part of my life, my future, but I was also sure that I had never seen him before outside of the images that come to me that I call _visions_. I have had some of them before, mainly of trivial things, but none of them have been this clear, this concrete. Yet, his existence was a total mystery to me, and I didn't know what the flashes of him were trying to tell me. But when I had these visions, I had a feeling in my heart that was strong- almost like it was… love. I didn't understand this at all. How could I love someone that I've never even seen?

Suddenly, I screamed loudly in shock when the water raining down on me turned from my comfortable temperature to freezing cold. From where the sink was in our relatively small bathroom, I could hear a familiar laugh that I knew all too well.

"Come and get me if you dare, Sis!" the voice of my oldest brother crowed triumphantly before he left the bathroom, slamming the door behind him.

I hurriedly shut off the water so that my body wouldn't go numb before I threw back the shower curtain. I grabbed a long towel and wrapped it around myself to avoid any awkward situations, and growling angrily, I ran out of the bathroom after him. "Emmett, I am going to _kill_ you!"

"Mary Alice Brandon! What in the world do you think you're doing?!"

I slid to a stop on the carpeted hallway floor at the dreadful sound of my full name, the bottoms of my feet burning slightly, and slowly turned to face the woman I knew was standing only a couple of feet behind me and giving me her trademark accusing glare. "I'm sorry, Grandma," I muttered in protest to quickly defend myself. "It's just that Emmett turned off the hot water in my shower, and-!"

"I'm tired of your horseplay, young lady," my grandmother snapped back at me, and I noticed that my brother in question had appeared behind her as he mouthed along with what she was saying. "Get back in the bathroom this instant. You're getting the carpet all wet!"

I quickly looked down and saw that she was right by the puddle that had formed around my feet from my dripping legs, arms, and hair. My eyes then traveled back up to my grandmother and looked behind her to glare at Emmett, who was two years my senior. She must have known who my piercing eyes were directed toward because she instantly spun around and began lecturing Emmett as I turned and walked back into the bathroom, closing the door behind me before leaning back against it. I closed my eyes as I sighed deeply. I hated being the youngest of my siblings since I had the most pranks played on me, and I seemed to be blamed for _everything_. Man, being sixteen was a major pain in the a-!

My thought ended with a yelp of surprise when there was a sudden knock on the door against my back. "Alice, are you done in here yet?"

I sighed with relief. The voice didn't belong to Emmett or my grandmother. Instead, the voice was the gentle tone of my other brother, Edward. He was definitely my favorite brother. Being only one year older than me, I felt as though I could relate to him more than Emmett, and we had grown so close we were almost inseparable. Whenever something was wrong, Edward always seemed to be the one who knew just how to cheer me back up again.

"Yeah." Thankfully, I had already washed up before Emmett changed the temperature on me, so I was technically done with my shower. "Just give me a chance to get dressed, and I'll be right out, okay, Ed?" Emmett and I were the only ones who were able to call him by that nickname and get away with it.

"All right. Take your time."

Not wanting to keep him waiting too much longer, I dripped the towel from around me and quickly changed into my outfit for the day, which consisted of a light purple t-shirt and a pair of khaki shorts. Once I was completely dressed and the towel was hung on the shower bar to dry, I opened the door to find that Edward was leaning casually back against the wall across from the bathroom with an apple in his hand. A small smile lit up his face when he saw me. Not many people knew that Edward and I were related unless they knew our last name since we didn't look much alike. My hair was black while his was a light honey. I looked much more like Emmett, whose hair color was very similar to mine.

"You'd better home that Grandma doesn't catch you with that out of the kitchen," I warned dryly as I closed the door behind me again. "She'll throw a fit if she sees you eating in the hallway. You might get her precious carpet dirty…" I could still see the dark spot where the puddle of water had been.

Edward winked as he took a bite of the fruit. "Don't worry. She won't catch me. She's too busy lecturing Emmett on how to properly treat a lady."

"I don't know why she bothers. At his rate, he'll never get a girlfriend." I couldn't help but smile as I looked at my brother after I made my joke. Edward was definitely my main lifeline in our grandmother's house, though I had to admit that Emmett was too. But even though none of us liked living here, we didn't have any other choice. After our parents suddenly died in an accident a couple of years ago, we were forced to decide to live here or at the orphanage back in Phoenix. Not wanting me to have to spend the rest of my teenage years in a place like the orphanage, Edward and Emmett had decided to come live with our grandmother, and we all moved to the small town of Forks, Washington. At least this way we would always have each other…

"So, what are your plans for today, little freak?" Edward asked, his eyes shining as he took another bite of his apple. He was the only one who could call me by that name and get away with it.

That was a good question. What _was_ I going to do today? "I don't know," I finally answered, putting a strand of my wet, dark hair behind my ear. "It's the weekend before the last week of school, so I don't have any homework or anything… Maybe I'll call Bella to see what she's doing today." Isabella Swan has been my best friend from school for the past two years that I've been here, and thankfully, we had a lot of classes together since we were in the same grade. She and her older sister, Rosalie Hale, were the adopted daughters of Carlisle Cullen, the most respected doctor in Forks, and his wife, Esme. Since I didn't have my parents anymore, the young couple had begun to take on that role. The only thing that was strange about the family was how much they all looked alike. Carlisle and Esme had adopted Rosalie and Bella from two different families, but yet they all had the same very pale skin and golden eyes. Even with a family who was related by blood, it was strange for them all to have the same eye color, especially one so different as gold.

Edward's eyes flared with interest for a moment at the mention of Bella, and I laughed a little. How could I have forgotten that he had asked her to the school year's final dance only a week ago? Though they had gone only as friends, I could see that their friendship was going to get deeper as it progressed… at least, I hoped it would.

"Would you like to come along, Edward?" I asked teasingly, a knowing smile on my face.

When he realized what I was implying, some color quickly rose to his cheeks. "No, that's all right," he muttered, flicking a piece of red apple peel at me. "I have other things to do today."

I shrugged, my eyes gleaming playfully. "Whatever you say, _Eddie_." I knew I was in trouble now- I had used the nickname he hated most.

Edward pounced in only a second, trapping me in a headlock. "What did you call me?" he tried to ask threateningly as he began to mess up my wet hair.

But I only laughed since out of my two brothers, Edward was always the one that wasn't rough with me. Even though he now had me caught and was messing my hair up completely, I could barely feel his arm around my neck, and he wasn't moving his hand over my head hard to push my hair around. It tickled more than anything. "All right, all right. I'm sorry, Ed!"

"You had better be." Though he once again tried to be threatening, he failed miserably since he was smiling broadly at me as he let me go.

I backed away from him, trying but failing to get my short hair straightened out again. He laughed at my unfortunate situation, but then he looked down the hall and quickly hid the apple behind his back.

"Grandma's coming."

Sure enough. As soon as the words left his mouth, our grandmother came around the corner and entered the hallway. I turned around and immediately dashed up the stairs near me just as she asked, "What do you have behind your back, Edward?"

"Nothing, Grandma."

I felt bad for leaving Edward behind to deal with our grandma, but I knew that he could handle his own against her. I hated how she seemed to always find something to yell at us for, but it was definitely better to live with her here in the rainy town of Forks than in an orphanage.

I reached the top of the stairs then and entered my room, which was the one at the end of the hallway. I closed the door behind me and grabbed my brush to straighten my hair out before going to the window to look outside. It wasn't raining like it had been for the past two weeks, and the sun was actually beginning to peek out from behind the clouds. For once, it was actually somewhat of a beautiful day. I pushed up on my window to open it with some difficulty since it hadn't been used in so long, and I smiled when I felt the mild air hit me. This day was going to be wonderful, I could feel it.

Then, I collapsed onto my bed, closing my eyes as I sighed. It wasn't even noon yet, and it had already been a long day. Maybe I felt so tired because of the images that kept coming to m mind- the images of the blond-haired boy with the brilliant golden eyes that didn't allow me to sleep.

I heard a soft meow from the floor beside me, and I cracked one eye open and watched as a black cat jumped up onto the bed before curling up on my stomach. I laughed a little, hoping not to startle her as I began to scratch her head behind her ears. She closed her eyes and purred softly with contentment. Her name was Mina, named after a character in one of my favorite books, Dracula- I felt like a nerd sometimes for loving the classics- and she was my one form of companionship if Edward and Emmett weren't around. She was my own personal cat- I had bought her the first year we moved to Forks- who didn't seem to be too fond of anyone else in the house.

After petting her absently for a while, I remembered that I was going to give Bella a call to see what she was up to today. I reached for my cordless phone that I kept at the head of my bed and quickly dialed her number. After the second ring, someone answered.

_"Hello?"_

I blinked in surprise when I heard the deeper voice since I had not been expecting him to be the one to answer. "Hi, Carlisle," I said, hoping that I didn't sound as surprised as I felt. "You're not at work today?"

_"Oh, good to hear from you, Alice,"_ Carlisle replied in a friendly way. I could almost hear his smile._ "No, I'm taking the day off today."_

"Oh, all right then." This statement shocked me even more. Never once in the two years I've been here had Carlisle taken the day off. "Well, is Bella there?"

_"Yes, she is. Hold on a minute. Let me get her for you."_

I waited for literally about a minute before the voice of my best friend was heard on the phone. _"Hey, Alice!"_

"Hey, Bella!" I said, a smile on my own face at her enthusiasm. "Are you doing anything today?"

_"Not really, but I can't leave the house,"_ Bella told me. _"My brother's coming back from down South today, and I wanna' be here."_

"Wait, you have a brother?" I asked, surprised again. I had no idea that there was a third kid in their family. For the two years I've been in Forks, it had only been Bella and Rosalie.

Bella laughed. _"Yeah, though actually, he's Rose's twin brother,"_ she explained. _"He left about a week before you and your brothers moved here. Before they got taken away from him and taken in by Carlisle, his and Rose's father signed him up for two years of military school. Even though there was a change in custody, he still had to go to the base down in Texas since he was signed up and paid for. But he's coming back today, so I'm really excited!"_

"Wow." That was all I could really say since I was still in shock. "I had no clue that Bella and Rosalie had a brother… "So, does that mean you can't hang out today?"

_"I never said that,"_ Bella said. _"I just said I shouldn't leave the house. You can still come here if you want."_

"Really?"

_"Yeah! Besides, I want you to meet Jasper. You would like him."_ Bella really was thrilled about him coming home, probably because she hasn't seen him in two years.

"Jasper?" That was in interesting name, but so were Rosalie and Isabella. I kinda' liked it…

Bella laughed a little. _"Yep. So, do you want to come over then?"_

"Sure," I told her. "I'll be over soon."

_"All right. See you in a little bit. Bye."_

"Bye." I hung up the phone and gently pushed Mina off my stomach so I could get off the bed. This day was going to be stranger than I thought. I had no idea that there was another member of their family. I wondered for a minute what Jasper must have been like. He had to be cute if he was Rosalie's twin brother since she was one of the most beautiful girls I've ever seen.

I left my room then and skipped down the stairs before entering the kitchen. Emmett was sitting at the table eating a bowl of chicken-flavored Ramen noodles without the juice, and our grandmother sat across from him doing a crossword puzzle. I don't know how my brother got away with eating them since Grandma didn't believe in Ramen noodles making a good meal.

"Is it okay if I go to Bella's house?" I asked her.

"Will you be home for dinner?" my grandma answered with another question.

"I don't know," I shrugged. "Would it be okay if I happened to stay?"

"Only if they invite you." She didn't even look up at me.

"Do you want me to give you a ride over there, Al?" Emmett wondered after swallowing a mouthful of noodles.

"Thanks but no thanks, Em," I told him. "It's actually pretty nice out today. I think I'll take my bike."

"Suit yourself," Emmett muttered as he went back to eating. "Just be careful, okay?"

"Don't worry. I will." I found it rather ironic that my brother, who purposely tried to make my life hell since he believed it was in his job description, was telling me to be careful when my grandmother was only concerned if I was going to be home in time for dinner or not. At least I knew where her priorities lied…

Feeling as though I had permission, I slipped my shoes on before leaving out that door that opened into the garage. I found my bike easily since I was the only one who had one- Emmett and Edward both had a car- and rode out of the garage and down the driveway. I turned left, heading in the direction of the Cullen household, which was strangely in the middle of the woods away from town. I wasn't sure why their house was so out of the way, but I kinda' liked the fact that it was so secluded.

The farther I got away from the city, the more the wind picked up. I shivered a little as I turned onto the long, narrow road that would lead me to the Cullen's hidden driveway, wishing that I had a light jacket. Even though I've lived in Forks for two years, it's still hard for me to remember that summer here is nothing like the summers, or winters for that matter, back in Phoenix where I used to live.

Suddenly, my vision blurred and was replaced by an image of the same blond-haired boy that had been invading my mind for I don't remember how long. His face was super pale, and his eyes were strangely black, not gold, as he flashed a charming smile in my direction. I felt my heart begin to race. Though he was as attractive as ever, there was something eerie, something that wasn't quite right, about him…

I shook my head fiercely to drive the image from my mind, and my vision finally cleared. But then, I shrieked loudly when my bike suddenly collided head-on with a large tree that was in my path. I flew over the handlebars and landed on my back in the grass beside the tree, yelping with surprise and pain. After I caught my breath, I slowly sat up and groaned when I saw that my knee was bleeding, probably scraped from when I flew off my bike. Damn. If I had these so-called _visions_, why couldn't I have them of something useful like me crashing into this tree for instance?

I stood up slowly, brushing myself off before I limped over to pick up my bike. I was just grateful that no cars had been going past at that time, so my pride was spared for the time being. I mounted my bike and took off, a little wobbly on the grass, but the rest of the journey went smoothly.

After pedaling down the long, winding driveway after I found it, I finally reached the Cullen's large, white house. I came to a stop at the steps and jumped off, leaning my bike carefully against the porch. I didn't have to worry about someone stealing it way out here in the middle of nowhere. I then skipped up the steps and rang the doorbell. I waited for only a moment before the large door opened and revealed my smiling best friend.

"Alice!" Bella exclaimed, hugging me quickly. "I'm glad you came."

"Thanks," I said as we pulled away, still feeling the coldness from her arms. "I am too."

Bella smiled back at me, but then her eyes narrowed. "What happened?" she asked, beginning to rub some dirt that was on my cheek.

"Oh, this?" I pushed her hand away gently. "I crashed into a tree on my bike on the way here. No big deal. But I scratched my knee too…"

"We should get you cleaned up," Bella muttered. Then, she turned to look back into the house behind her. "Carlisle, Alice is here!"

The young doctor appeared behind his younger adopted daughter only a moment later, and he smiled broadly when he saw me. I couldn't help but smile back at the man I considered to be my father. Carlisle was a very handsome man. "Nice to see you, Alice," he greeted, giving me a quick hug. "Come on in." He and Bella stepped away from the door so that I could walk in.

"She had an accident on the way here," Bella continued once Carlisle had closed the door behind me. "Something about crashing into a tree on her bike."

"Well, I suppose we should get you cleaned up then," Carlisle said, looking me over me quickly to assess my injuries. His golden eyes lingered on my bloody knee for a moment before moving back to my dirt-stained face. "Come with me into the kitchen, Alice."

I followed him through the all-white living room without a word, seeing that Rosalie was sitting on one of the couches reading a fashion magazine. She looked up with her golden eyes briefly when she heard us walk by, and she gave me a small smile as I passed before going back to what she was reading. Typical Rosalie… Esme was in the kitchen when the three of us arrived, baking what smelled like my favorite chocolate chip cookies. Her greeting was much more friendly.

"I'm glad you could come, Alice," she said as she hugged me tightly. "You'll stay for dinner, won't you?"

"Sure," I told her, smiling at the woman I now considered to be my mother. "I'd love to." Grandma _did_ say that I could stay for dinner if they invited me to. "Thank you, Esme."

"Of course, my dear."

Carlisle then gestured for me to sit up on the counter after he got a first-aid kit, and I quickly jumped up. He began by cleaning the smudged dirt off my face, and then he began to clean and disinfect the cut on my knee. I shivered slightly, noticing how cold his hands were. He was just about to put the bandage on the scrape as the doorbell rang again.

Bella's face lit up at the sound. "I'll get it," she announced. "It must be Jasper." She then left the kitchen, but I could hear two pairs of footsteps heading toward the front door. Both Bella and Rosalie were anxious to see their brother…

"Jasper's been gone for a long time," Carlisle muttered as he began to pack up his first aid kit. "It will be nice to have him home again."

I smiled broadly when I heard the happy greetings from Bella and Rosalie in the living room, and I knew that it must have been Jasper who had walked through the door. Esme turned away from the oven and gave a broad, loving smile to an unseen person in the next room while Carlisle did the same.

"Welcome home," the handsome doctor greeted, his eyes shining.

"Thank you, Carlisle," a deeper voice replied. "It's a relief to finally be home."

Three people entered the kitchen then- two of which were Bella and Rosalie. They stood close to the third person who was with them, who must have been Jasper. But as I looked at him more closely, I gasped quietly in shock as my eyes widened in recognition.

This was the boy that I had seen in my visions.

**A/N**: That's it for this chapter! Hopefully, if I get enough reviews, I'll get the next chapter on soon since I have it done on my end. I actually have only about one more chapter to write for this story, so I should be able to give frequent updates if time allows. I also realize that Bella may be a bit OOC in this chapter, but she gets better. This was just an introductory chapter to expose you to the main characters for the entire story, though there will obviously be more coming in. More will be happening in upcoming chapters, believe me. But, I hope you enjoyed it anyway! Thanks for reading! Your reviews are much appreciated (just no flames)! Thank you!

**Next Chapter**: _My Name is Alice_


	3. Chapter 2: My Name is Alice

**Disclaimer**: Nope, the characters still aren't mine. I'm just borrowing them.

**A/N**: Hey! Well, thank you to the people who reviewed! It means a lot! But since you asked, here's another update. I could also be really mean, though, and not update for a really long time if I don't get more since I have almost the entire story done on my end… So, please review! But thank you to those who did, I really appreciate it. I noticed a slight mistake in my summary. "Blood Moon" is actually a full moon in October, not December. My mistake. But anyway, here's chapter two! Hopefully, some questions will be answered. Enjoy!

_Chapter 2- "My Name is Alice"_

There was no mistaking him- this was the boy that I had been seeing in my visions. I just never realized before how much he looked like Rosalie. His hair was light blond like hers- a feature that I recognized from the images I had seen of him. His face was very pale like hers, but unlike her, his eyes were a deep shade of black instead of gold. But he was still as attractive as I had seen him before.

Carlisle's smile slowly vanished as he looked closely at Jasper, and a silent message must have passed between them since he suddenly cleared his throat. "It's good to have you back," he told the seventeen-year-old as he put his arm around his shoulders. "We missed you."

Jasper smiled at him in return. "It's good to be home," he replied as Esme hugged him tightly. "I missed all of you too."

Bella pulled on his arm as soon as Esme released him. "Jazz, I want you to meet my friend Alice," she said as she gestured to me. "You don't know her since you were gone before she moved to Forks."

I forced myself out of my shock of seeing this boy that I had only seen in visions before as I attempted to give him a smile. "It's nice to meet you, Jasper," I muttered, hoping that my tone was friendly.

His black eyes slowly moved over to where I still sat on the counter, and I gasped quietly when I could see that there was nothing friendly in his gaze. In fact, it almost seemed as though there was hate in those eyes. But how could he hate me if he doesn't even know me? Then, Jasper's eyes moved down to my now bandaged knee, and they seemed to flicker with life at the blood staining it- my blood- as he took a sharp intake of breath. But then, he gasped quietly when Carlisle placed his hand on his arm, and he finally tore his eyes away. "Yes," he said almost silently, the words seeming forced. "Nice to meet you too."

Bella frowned with disapproval as she exchanged concerned looks with Rosalie. Clearly, this wasn't typical behavior for their brother… But Carlisle and Esme appeared as though there was nothing out of the ordinary, which was strange. "You must be tired from your trip, Jasper," the doctor commented, almost as if he meant to distract him from me.

Jasper nodded. "Yes, I'm exhausted," he confirmed. "I think I'll head upstairs…"

"Here. I'll take your bags," Carlisle offered. He took the bags from his adopted son, and without another word, he followed Jasper up the stairs and out of sight.

Esme sighed as she turned to look at me. "I think it would be best if you went home now, Alice," she said uncertainly, her eyes flickering nervously. "Jasper's exhausted, so how about you come over for dinner one night this week when things begin to settle down, all right?"

I slowly nodded, jumping down from the counter. "All right. Thanks for having me over for a bit," I replied. "I'll see you soon."

"Sorry it didn't work out today, Alice," Bella muttered as I approached her, and I could clearly see that she was still concerned about Jasper.

"It's okay," I told her with a smile as I gave her a quick hug. "I'll see you on Monday, all right?"

"All right…"

"Do you want a ride home, Alice?" Esme asked from behind me. "It's getting chillier out there, and I think it might start raining."

I turned to look over my shoulder as I gave her a smile. "No, that's okay, Esme," I answered. "I'll be fine. Thank you for the offer, though."

"Of course. Be safe, Alice."

"Yeah, and don't crash into any more trees," Bella added teasingly.

I laughed a little. "Don't worry," I assured her. "I won't." At least… I hoped I wouldn't. I couldn't make any guarantees… "I'll see you guys later."

Fortunately for me, the ride home went much smoother than the ride to the Cullen house… and I didn't run into any more trees. The only thing that sucked was that the temperature did drop as Esme had predicted, and it had begun to drizzle. By the time I reached my house, however, it was pouring. I shivered violently as I put my bike in the garage, and I quickly ran to the door to enter the hopefully warmer house.

As I shut the door behind me and slipped my drenched shoes off, a towel was suddenly thrust into my face. I jumped with surprise, but then I noticed that it was Emmett holding it out for me. "I saw you ride up," he explained when he saw my shock, draping the towel over my head. "Go upstairs and get changed into some dry clothes, Al. You look frozen. Ed's getting a blanket for you."

"Thanks, Em." I began to towel dry my hair as I ran through the kitchen and up the stairs to my room, anxious to get out of my wet clothes. I grabbed a dark blue mid-sleeve shirt and a pair of black gym pants, leaving my socks of since I didn't have any other plans for the day and was probably going to end up just sitting around the house doing nothing. Then, I left my room once my hair wasn't so wet and ran back down the stairs to the bathroom and threw the wet towel into the tub. Though I was now mostly dry, I still felt chilled, so I began my search for Edward with the blanket that Emmett had told me he had for me.

Unfortunately, my search was soon interrupted.

"Mary, can you come here please?"

I sighed as I came to a stop in the hallway. My grandmother was the only one who called me by my actual first name even though I hated it. Even my parents, after I showed a dislike to it when I was younger, called me Alice since I liked it a lot better. But I slowly entered the living room anyway, and I found her lying on the couch reading a book that I couldn't determine the title of. "Yeah, Grandma?"

"We need to have a talk, Mary," my grandma said when she saw that I had entered, slowly sitting up as she set her book down. But when she saw me, here eyes instantly flared accusingly. "What are you wearing? And were are your socks?"

I looked down at my outfit. Granted it didn't match and my feet were bare, but I didn't see the problem. "What's the big deal?" I asked, my tone slightly impatient. "It's not like I'm doing anything else today."

"That's just the kind of thing I'm talking about, Mary," my grandmother told me, ignoring my question. "You need to start showing proper respect to me, which you haven't done lately. You're a young lady now, so start acting like one!"

I was angered by her criticism. It was undeserved. "If you're talking about when I was chasing Emmett today…" I tried to begin as calmly as I could.

"That's not all I'm talking about, Mary, though that is definitely something that needs to be worked on," my grandma said. "You don't listen to me much, your tone when you talk to me is less than ideal, and you do things you know I don't approve of."

"What are you talking about?" I knew that some of these things were true, but why was she getting on my case about it now over a stupid outfit? "I do what you ask me to do when you ask."

"You may hear me and do what I say, but that doesn't mean you're listening," my grandma sighed. "You need to learn your place. A lady of your age shouldn't be running around and being rough with their brothers. You should be polite and proper while finding a man that would be suitable for you, not horseplaying around."

I sighed, my anger rising. I didn't want a boyfriend just because she wanted me to. "Why aren't Emmett and Edward getting this lecture too?" I demanded. "They mess around more than I do!"

"I'll be talking to them also, but I feel that your situation is more potent," my grandma replied, her tone becoming harsher as well. "You need to become the young lady that you are, Mary."

"Well, what if I'm not like other girls?" I shrieked, my anger finally getting the best of me. ""I'm not like everyone else! I'm not like you!"

I could tell that angered her by the flare in her eyes and the harsh tone of her voice when she spoke next. "As long as you are in this house, Mary, you will do as I say and abide by my rules!"

"Maybe I should just leave then!" I snapped. "Maybe then I wouldn't be such a burden to you!" And with that, the conversation was done. I didn't want to hear another word, so I turned and began to walk out of the living room.

"You come back here right now, Mary!" my grandma ordered from behind me, getting to her feet. "Don't you dare walk away from me while I'm talking to you!"

"I'm done talking," I told her as calmly as I could as I stopped in the doorway and looked back at her. "Oh, and by the way, my name is _Alice_!" Then, I left the room. I heard my grandmother calling my name behind me, but I ignored it as I rushed up the stairs and ran into the sanctuary of my room, slamming the door behind me.

Mina was watching me curiously as I sat on my bed, tears burning in my eyes. Once they were calmed, I stood up and went to my drawer, grabbing a dry pair of socks and pulling them on before going to my closet and pulling out my black hoodie. I wasn't sure where I was going to go- I just had to go.

I may have been being harsh on my grandmother- I mean, I appreciated the fact that she took Emmett, Edward, and I in when we needed her, but she had to understand that I was my own person, and she had to understand that I was still dealing with the sudden death of my parents that only happened two short years ago.

This was the thought that gave me strength to leave my room, go down the stairs, and walk straight past the living room and into the kitchen to grab my already wet shoes and slip them on. Then, taking a deep breath, I pulled open the door that opened to the garage and went outside, leaving the house behind me without looking back.

I ran for a while- I don't even know how long- through the pouring rain. By the time I finally slowed to a stop, I was drenched to the bone and shivering violently, and I noticed that I had been running in the direction of the Cullen household. I hadn't even realized it. But I was probably heading there since I felt more at home with them than even my own house.

I bent over to try to catch my breath, taking deep breaths to calm my racing heart. The cold rain pelted my back and dripped onto my face, mingling with my hot tears. Why the hell had I actually left? Why couldn't I have just left it as a threat? This was definitely one of the stupidest things I've ever done…

Finally, I straightened back up and began to slowly continue walking in the direction I had originally been running. I probably wouldn't actually make it as far as the Cullens' house before I decided to turn around. But I couldn't go back home, at least, not yet.

Then, I gasped. Driving down the road going the opposite direction I was walking was a shiny, silver Volvo. And was I just imagining it, or was Jasper Hale- blond hair, pale complexion, black eyes, handsome- in the driver's seat, looking curiously in my direction as he passed? I turned around to watch the car drive away from me down the road, stepping out into the street a little since there wasn't any other traffic, to see if he really had been the one driving, but it was too far away to see. Then, it turned out of sight. I must have been imagining it.

Suddenly, my vision blurred again. I saw myself, smiling broadly, reaching out to touch Jasper's pale face. He took my hand in his and gently lowered it, and then he leaned in closer to me…

Then, I heard the distant sound of what sounded like a car horn blaring. My eyes shot open, finding myself sitting on the wet street as a set of headlights hit me. That car horn was closer than I had thought… I screamed in terror and covered my head, which I knew wouldn't be much good against what I could now see was a Jeep. I wondered if I was visible sitting in the pouring rain wearing a black hoodie. Probably not…

But, quiet unexpectedly, I wasn't hit. I cautiously lowered my arms, and I gasped and jumped back when I saw that the dark green Jeep was only a couple of inches away from my shaking frame. I heard the doors opening and closing, and I saw two figures rush toward me, one from each side.

"What the hell do you think you're doing, Al? Running away like that…"

I recognized that voice. I wearily looked up at the two figures that were now crouching down close to me, and I recognized them to be Emmett and Edward. The older of the two had spoken. "I… I-I'm… s-sorry…" I managed to mutter through my chattering teeth. I hadn't realized until now just how cold I actually was.

"You're frozen," Edward observed with worry, putting his arms around me in an attempt to try to warm me up. Great job, Sherlock… "Let's get you home."

Before I could try to push myself up on my own, Emmett stood up before reaching down and easily scooping me up into his arms. I put my arms around his neck as he carried me around to the Jeep door before he shoved me into the middle seat. Edward sat to my right in the passenger's place and Emmett on my left behind the wheel so that I was squished between them. The younger of my two brothers reached forward and turned the heat up al the way while the older put the Jeep in drive and turned around to head back to our house. I laid my head on Edward's shoulder, feeling exhausted. The last thing I saw in my mind's eye before I drifted into sleep was imagining Jasper's concerned face.

* * *

I quickly opened my eyes, and I saw with surprise that I was lying on the gravel on the side of the street. I looked around me, seeing that the sky above was still swirling with storm clouds but no rain was falling. After taking a deep breath, I slowly sat up, seeing that my clothes and hair were still soaked and that there was a puddle around me that I had been lying in. Looking closer, I saw that the Cullens' hidden driveway was across the street from me. Was I imagining that Emmett and Edward had picked me up? Had it just been a vision? Had I actually gotten this far? I sighed, knowing that I might as well go to the house now that I was so close. I would just stay long enough to warm up a little and then get a ride home. They would understand my situation, right?

Looking both ways, I quickly crossed the street since there wasn't any traffic coming, and I began my walk down the dark, winding driveway toward the Cullens' house. I shivered when a strong wind rushed past me since I was still soaked to the bone, and I wondered why the house seemed to be so deep into the woods surrounding it. Actually, that would probably be because I had never walked the driveway before- things always seemed to take longer when you were walking.

"What are you doing here, Alice? I thought you went home."

I stopped walking and gasped at the sudden voice, not expecting it. It was a voice I barely knew with no warmth, no friendliness, to it. The tone wasn't curious- it was almost accusing.

I watched with shock as Jasper Hale walked out of the shadows of the trees before me, his face as pale as before and his eyes black as they studied me. That's when I realized that he was the only one in the Cullen family who had completely black eyes while the rest of the members had golden ones…

"Oh, I… I left my house again," I managed to explain quietly, taking a small, automatic step back while he slowly came closer to me. I suddenly felt strangely nervous. And yet… I still felt as though I was attracted to him- that's the feeling that all my visions of him gave me. Love. So why was I backing away? "I… I was hoping that… I could warm up a little and get… get a ride home, and maybe call my brothers so they… they won't worry…"

A smirk appeared on Jasper's face, any my heart raced with fear. Something was very different… very _wrong_ about him… "I'm not sure if that will be necessary, Alice." As soon as the words were out of his mouth, he suddenly moved so fast that he was directly in front of me. I gasped, and it took all my willpower not to scream. How had he moved so fast?

"Don't be afraid," he whispered, his tone kinder.

Could he really sense my nervousness? My heart began to beat even faster, if that was even possible, at his closeness. But isn't this what I wanted? I slowly looked up at his black eyes, my breath catching. Though they seemed dark and empty, I felt as though I was being drawn into them.

Jasper slowly raised his hand and placed it lightly on my cheek. I gasped quietly when I felt how cold it was, but he placed one finger over my mouth as he muttered, "Shh…" Then, he began to lean in closer to me.

This was kinda' what my vision had shown me before, but why wasn't I excited and happy? That's how it had shown me feeling… Instead, I was on alert and confused.

But suddenly, my eyes widened with pain as I attempted to scream when his teeth clamped tightly onto my neck.

* * *

I sat up quickly and screamed, tears streaming from my eyes as I began to shake. That had to be one of the worst dreams I had ever had. It seemed so real…

"Shh, Alice. It's all right."

A pair of arms suddenly wrapped around me, and I leaned into the person's embrace. I placed my head on their shoulder as I continued to cry, and they began to rub soothing circles into my back. Finally, my tears stopped and my breathing calmed. "Thanks, Ed," I muttered quietly, still remaining in his arms for a minute.

"Of course, Alice," Edward replied, patting my back before I straightened up to wipe my tears away. "You must have had a terrible nightmare or something."

I nodded to confirm his statement, but then I noticed with confusion that Edward was kneeling on the floor beside the couch in our living room. Why was I here?

"Grandma's taking a nap upstairs, so we thought that we should just let you sleep on the couch," Edward explained as if he could read my thoughts. "Sorry. I know it's not the most comfortable."

"That's fine." But before I could pursue the conversation, someone else entered the living room from the kitchen, a glass of milk in hand.

"Everything okay in here?"

"Everything's fine, Emmett," Edward answered as our older brother came and sat in the chair close to us as he took a sip of milk. "Alice just had a nightmare."

"Really?" Was I seeing things, or did Emmett actually look concerned as he set his milk glass down. "What about, Kiddo?"

I looked from Emmett to Edward and back, wondering how much I should tell them as I wrapped the blanket tighter around me. They're the only two people in my family- well, besides Bella- who knew I sometimes had these so-called "visions," even if they didn't exactly believe them. Hey, I wouldn't either if I was in their place. Something like that wasn't exactly normal. But if I explained the dream I just had and not the visions that led up to it, it wouldn't make much sense.

I sighed before I cleared my throat. It was worth a shot anyway. "Well, first off, this has been happening for a long time now, I'm not exactly sure how long, though." I could tell by their blank expressions that I had lost Emmett and Edward already. Have to bring them back, Alice… "I'm not talking about my nightmare. This is something that relates to it. Anyway, you know how I sometimes have… visions?"

There was a flicker in both of my brothers' eyes that showed that they were hesitant about where this explanation was going as they exchanged glances. "Yes…" Edward muttered slowly. "Continue, Alice."

"Well… this is going to sound so strange… I've been having these flashes of this boy. He always has the same blond hair, pale skin, and golden eyes. But in a couple of them lately, and in my nightmare, his eyes were black." I knew except for the last part about the black eyes, I had described the Cullen family, and Edward and Emmett both recognized that. "Whenever I have these flashes of him, I always feel this strong attachment to him as if… well, as if I love him or something. But I've never seen him in person before… or at least not until this morning."

Okay, I could tell that my brothers thought that I was officially crazy now. Emmett's eyebrow had risen when I mentioned the part about love, and Edward's face had gone unusually blank. But I hadn't expected them to understand- I didn't even really understand it myself.

"You said that you hadn't seen him until this morning," Edward said uncertainly. "When was that? Do you know who he is?"

I nodded quickly in answer, hoping that fact would make them feel at least slightly better. "His name is Jasper Hale, and he's Rosalie's twin brother. You know Rose- Bella's adopted sister?"

Emmett's face contorted with annoyance. I had almost forgotten how much he didn't like Rosalie. He always kept complaining about how annoying he thought she was. In his own words- "She's a bitch." I, on the other hand, didn't think she was all that bad. Conceded? Most definitely. Other than that, though… But yet, I have also heard Emmett say that she was one of the most beautiful girls he has ever seen. Contradictory? Almost.

"So, let me get this straight," Edward muttered. "Bella and Rosalie have a brother? How come we've never known about him before?"

"He's been in Texas for the past two years at military school because his actual father signed him up before he was adopted by Carlisle, so he still had to go even though he had a different guardian," I told him. "He got home today, and I was introduced to him before I left." I thought it best to leave out the fact that he was acting strangely. Didn't want any more strikes against him…

"So, how does you meeting Jasper, who you've only been seeing in your mind thus far, have anything to do with your nightmare?" Emmett asked. I could see that he was trying to piece the information together in his own head.

"He was in it." How was I going to explain this without making him sound… well, _evil_? Or sadistic? "But he wasn't himself. It was almost like he was a… a vampire or something." That was the name I had been looking for since I woke up to describe Jasper in that dream… _Vampire_.

This time, Edward raised his eyebrow. "A vampire?" he repeated in disbelief. "What, did he bite you or something?"

I nodded, not wanting to answer that aloud as I placed my hand on my neck where Jasper's teeth had been in my dream. I was almost surprised that there weren't any marks there. It had seemed so real that I could have sworn I actually felt the pain…

Suddenly, Emmett began to laugh, which is a sound that I hadn't been expecting. "A _vampire_?!" he gasped through his laughter. "Come on, Al, you can't be serious! I mean, I know that the Cullen family is a bit strange, but to say that one of them is a _vampire_ is ridiculous! They don't exist!"

"It was just a dream, you doofus," I muttered in my defense, frowning as I threw a pillow at him. But my frown instantly vanished as soon as the pillow hit Emmett in the face.

"Dream or not, I'm a little concerned about you, Alice," Edward stated, the only serious one out of the three of us at the moment. "I don't know why you feel the way you do so strongly about Jasper, who you've only truly seen once, but this is a situation that I'm keeping my eye on."

I rolled my eyes at his concern… or a better term would be over protectiveness. "Listen, Ed. Nothing's going to happen," I assured him with a smile. "I'm fine, okay? You have nothing to worry about."

**A/N**: So that was more of an introductory chapter as well, but now that it's over, things will start to pick up with the next chapter. Do you wanna' see more of Jasper? How about some Jacob and maybe James later on? Or the famous parking lot scene at the school? Well, I need reviews. The chapter's done- it all depends on you. Thank you for reading! Your reviews are much appreciated! Thank you!

**Next Chapter**: _Walking on Thin Ice_


	4. Chapter 3: Walking on Thin Ice

**Disclaimer**: Nope! I'm still not Stephenie Meyer, so none of the characters are mine. Dang…

**A/N (please read!)**: Hey, thanks for your reviews, guys! I appreciate them all! And I'm sorry for the longish wait. I've actually been really busy lately (including hoping to do a story on a certain band with a certain actor in it for our school newspaper…), so that's why I haven't been able to update. The good news, however, is that I have the story completely done on my end, so now it just depends on when I can have time to update. Just a few notes about the story now… Though it's mainly from Alice's POV, there will be a few sections from Jasper's POV (I think either four or five…), so you can see what's going on in his mind too. And though it follows the extremely basic events of _Twilight_ (basically girl meets vampire), it will not be like how Bella met Edward. Just like in the book, I am going to try to get across that Alice and Jasper's relationship goes much deeper, which will actually be explained in the sequel. Yes, there's going to be a sequel (which is in the works), and I'm going to try to combine elements from all four books into two (possibly three depending on how the second one ends), but I am not going to do all four. So, I think that's pretty much it! Enjoy chapter three (this is where things begin to pick up!)!

_Chapter 3- Walking on Thin Ice_

The rest of the weekend when by fast for me, mainly because I spent most of it sleeping due to a cold and fever I developed due to my first-ever running away attempt. Emmett didn't make it much better since he would often come into my room and switch the CD I would be listening to in my stereo with one of his hip-hop ones, which annoyed me to no end since that was the kind of music I hated the most. Not only that, but to make it worse, my grandma would often come in when I was almost asleep and complain about something or other that wasn't even my fault.

Edward was my only form of solace. He would often sit with me and have conversations about whatever came to mind-sometimes lasting late into the night. On Sunday night, however, our discussion was very serious.

"Do you think I'm crazy, Ed?"

He blinked, and I could see the confusion on his face in the moonlight. "Of course not, Alice," he answered. "What makes you think that?"

I sighed. "Well, with all these visions I've been having…" I began in a mutter. Even when I was sleeping before Edward came into my room, images of Jasper haunted my mind, which had been happening a lot more frequently since I saw him in person. In some he was friendly, in others he was frightening, but in both cases, he was as handsome as ever. And either way, I longed for him.

Edward sighed also at my statement. "Even though I might not exactly believe them, I don't think that you're crazy," he told me, and I could see the truth of it in his eyes. "Now Emmett, on the other hand…"

I snorted, which turned out to be a bad idea. "Emmett just thinks I'm possessed or something," I muttered, sitting up slightly as I reached for the Kleenex box at the edge of my bed.

"No, Emmett doesn't think you're possessed," Edward said with a laugh, handing me the box I needed as I laid back down again. "It's just that… this whole Jasper thing has us concerned. It's not normal."

"How many times do I have to tell you that you don't have to be worried about that?" My voice definitely reflected how stuffed up my now was now. "Everything is under control, Ed. Besides, I think I would have seen something by now if Jasper was really intending to hurt me."

"He did in that one dream you had," Edward reminded me gravely.

But I just brushed his comment off. "That was just a nightmare."

"How do you know?"

"Because vampires don't exist."

Edward didn't have an answer for that, so he just remained silent. I sighed, shifting my position a little so I could look at him better. I had to try to find a way to explain this to him so that he would understand. "It's kind of like you and Bella," I finally settled on. "When you first saw her, you fell for her instantly."

Color rose in Edward's cheeks at the memory. "That's… different."

My eyes narrowed. "How?"

"Well… the first time I saw her was in person, not in my mind," Edward enlightened. "I know her well. You barely know Jasper, and you're only going off of flashes you've seen."

"That doesn't mean that I can't get to know him, Ed," I protested. "When you first met Bella, you didn't know her either. I don't see how this is so different."

Edward appeared torn. I knew half of him wanted to allow me to be happy since I was his little sister, but the other half wanted to protect me since I was his little sister. He was walking on thin ice. "I… I just don't think this is a good idea, Alice," he finally told me. "I don't want you to get hurt."

I sighed, looking at my older brother sadly. "I won't, Ed," I promised him in a whisper, sitting up to kiss his cheek. "I won't."

* * *

By the time Monday came, my fever was gone, but my nose was still stuffed up and my head was fuzzy. But since I didn't have a fever anymore, I was well enough to go to school. Besides, it was the last week of the year, and since I was already done with most of my exams except for one or two, it would be a good way to end the year. I couldn't miss it.

I sat in the passenger seat of Edward's small car as he drove toward the school, Emmett speeding down the road ahead of us in his Jeep. It was still amazing to me that he could drive that fast and never get pulled over. It was a complete mystery to me how he did it.

Edward and I finally pulled into the parking lot of the school, and I watched as he parked next to a shiny silver Volvo. My eyes widened in recognition when I saw it. But he wouldn't be here… would he?

"What's wrong, little freak?" Edward asked, a teasing half smile lighting up his face.

"I… I just recognize that car," I muttered, not able to tear my eyes away from it. I could see it clearly in my mind's eye- me walking down the street and seeing that same car fly by… imagining seeing Jasper Hale driving it…

"Hmm… I don't think I've ever seen that car before," Edward muttered thoughtfully. "Oh, well. Probably nothing. Come on. Let's get inside before you get any sicker."

I complied without hesitation, but I did sneeze the moment I stepped into the cold air. Ugh, I hated this. Wasn't it supposed to be _summer_? Edward laughed a little as he locked up the car, and I followed him across the parking lot into the school building. Since school hadn't officially started yet, everyone was gathered into groups as they waited for the first bell. I spotted Emmett with the rest of the football team since he was the quarterback, and they were talking and laughing much too loudly for before eight in the morning. My pounding headache didn't appreciate it very much… Edward left me then after giving me a quick, one-armed hug to talk to some of his friends in his grade level about a project they had to do for one of their finals. I looked around, and spotting Bella off to the side with Rosalie, I wandered over.

"Alice!" Bella greeted me in her friendly manner while Rosalie just nodded in acknowledgement, hugging me quickly when I approached. Surprisingly, her cold arms felt good that morning… "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah," I muttered, sniffing a little. "I have a cold, though. I spent most of the weekend sleeping."

"Oh, I'm sorry." Bella did look genuinely concerned.

"It's no big deal," I shrugged. And really, colds weren't. They were just annoying. "How is everything at home with Jasper coming back and everything?"

Surprisingly, Bella smiled. "Good! He's pretty much back to his old self again. He was just exhausted from traveling when you first met him, which was why he wasn't very friendly."

"I can understand that." Moving from Phoenix to Forks two years ago wasn't exactly the easiest move of my life. But the fact that he was getting back to normal was a good sign. Maybe he didn't hate me after all…

Bella nodded. "He's actually coming to this school for the week since by law, he has to attend a school since he's under eighteen," she concluded.

My heart beat a little faster at her statement. Jasper was going to be _here_? So, that _was_ his car I had seen out in the parking lot… "Really?"

Before Bella or Rosalie could answer, another deeper voice came from behind me. "Yes. This school is much different from when I was in military school. Larger… friendlier…"

I quickly turned around, seeing that none other than Jasper Hale himself was standing behind me, a small smile on his face. Though he was staying a little farther away from me than Bella and Rosalie were, I could see that I still only came up to his chest. Why did I have to be so short? But the thing I noticed the most was that his eyes were now a beautiful golden color that were similar to his sisters', not black like they had been when I had first met him.

"I'm sorry that I was so rude to you when we were first introduced," Jasper continued, and I noticed that his voice had slight traces of a Southern accent that wasn't too noticeable- had to be from the two years he spent in Texas. "Traveling really took a toll on me, but that was no excuse to treat you like that."

Did he seriously just apologize? Okay, note to self. When Jasper's eyes are black, he's a total jerk. But when they're gold like the rest of his family's eyes are, he's really nice. Quiet and kinda' shy, but nice nonetheless. How the hell did his eyes, not to mention his mood, change so drastically anyway?

But before I could tell him that it was okay and that I understood, the bell that signaled we had to go to our lockers rang. A small smile appeared on Jasper's face again as he looked back at me. "Well, Alice, I guess I'll see you at lunch then."

He remembered my name? But that wasn't the only part of his statement that confused me. "What do you mean?" I asked curiously.

Amusement shone in Jasper's eyes. "I assume you'll be sitting with Bella?" When I nodded, he laughed a little. "Then I'll see you at lunch."

* * *

"Are you okay, Alice? You don't look so good."

"_Well your _face_ doesn't look so good!" _I thought to myself bitterly as I looked up at my annoying friend, Mike Newton. Okay, so I normally wasn't that mean, but I was in a really crappy mood. Why? Number one, we were in math class- my least favorite. Number two, we had already done our final exam, so we were watching a really boring move about guess what? Math. Number three, even though my fever was gone, my cold was still there full force- my nose was stuffy, I had a terrible headache, and I felt as though I was going to pass out. And number four, this kid sitting next to me was now asking if I was okay and telling me that I didn't look good. This really sucked…

"Oh, yeah, Mike. I'm perfectly fine," I answered in a mutter, putting my head on my arms again. Couldn't he recognize the universal symbol for _leave me alone_?

"Come on, Alice," Mike pressed. Guess not… "What's wrong?"

I sighed in frustration. Might as well get it over with. "I'm sick because of the really crappy weekend I had, okay?" I snapped quietly, hoping my harsher tone would make him realize I didn't want to talk anymore.

"What happened?" Didn't this guy ever learn? "You know you can talk to me."

Could I really? Well, if it would shut him up… "My grandma was giving me a really hard time, so I tried to run away since I just had to get out of the house," I explained quickly. "But it happened to be during when it was raining really hard on Saturday. I went a pretty far distance before almost getting hit by Emmett's Jeep when he and Ed came out to look for me, but the time I spent in the rain was long enough for me to get sick. I spent the rest of the weekend sleeping."

Actually, the look of complete shock on Mike's face was pretty amusing. For the two years he's known me, he always considered me to be the "good kid," not one that was rebellious enough to try to pull a stunt like I did this weekend. Congratulations, Michael Newton, you have just seen the other side of Mary Alice Brandon.

But, he recovered fast. "Gee… I'm sorry that your grandma had that affect on you, Alice," Mike said, his expression troubled. "I had no idea… You know that if you ever need somewhere to go, our place is open to you. Just call and I can come pick you up."

Okay, so quite clearly, the crush he has had on me for the past two years is still there, even though I have turned him down many times. Man, this guy is persistent. No wonder my grandma had tried to hook me up with him… Then, my eyes traveled to the girl sitting at the desk in front of Mike, who appeared to be angry about something. Jessica Stanley. She had been my friend when I first moved to Forks, but we have been drifting apart over the past year, mostly likely because of all the attention that Mike has been giving me. She had the biggest crush on him, but he hardly noticed her. It was kinda' sad, really. They would make a great couple…

"Don't let your girlfriend hear you say that," I whispered teasingly, a playful smile lighting up my face.

Mike blushed slightly while Jessica's eyes flared angrily before she turned back to face the T.V. in front of the classroom. "She's not my girlfriend," he muttered, disgruntled.

I laughed a little, but then a true smile appeared on my face. "Thanks for the offer though, Mike," I told him. "I'll keep it in mind." I was pretty sure I wasn't going to have to resort to that option though. There were others that I would go to before his house. But it was still nice of him to offer regardless.

"Of course, Alice. Anytime."

After that, he left me alone. Since he wasn't talking anymore, I could rest my head on my arms in peace. As my eyes slowly closed on their own will, the last thought on my mind was how much cuter Jasper was when he truly smiled…

Suddenly, I was jerked awake by a hand gently shaking my shoulder. I squeaked with surprise and covered my eyes with my hands when bright light hit them, but after a few minutes, they adjusted to the room around me. How long was I out? The movie was finished, and the classroom was empty except for the teacher, who was checking something or other on his computer, and Mike, who was standing over me. "What…?"

"Sorry I didn't wake you sooner," Mike said, seeming hesitant. "You're sick, and you looked so peaceful, so I didn't think that-!"

"Mike, what time is it?" I demanded, interrupting him when I wondered why he was acting so nervous.

He sighed. "It's eleven-forty…" he began in a mutter.

It was _eleven-forty_?! I was ten minutes late for lunch… the lunch that Jasper said he would see me at. How could Mike do this to me? Did the teacher even care that we were still in here? "Mike, why didn't you wake me up sooner?!" I shrieked, quickly gathering my stuff together. One of my books fell off my desk in my haste and almost landed on my toe when it hit the floor.

Mike looked truly uncomfortable now as he bent down to pick up my fallen book. "Well, you needed the sleep, and it's just lunch…"

_Just lunch_?! Today it was _not_ just lunch. I snatched my book from his hand as I slung my backpack over my shoulder before I ran out of the classroom. I dashed down the strangely empty hallways to my locker, quickly stuffing my books inside so haphazardly that I knew they could potentially fall on my later, and grabbed my bag lunch. After shutting and locking it, I ran down the halls to the cafeteria and burst inside. It was so noisy that no one noticed my abrupt entrance.

Well… almost no one. The now three Cullen siblings looked up simultaneously as the doors crashed open from their table in the very back of the cafeteria. That was strange… Could they really hear that from so far away?

Bella smiled and waved me over, and a small smile lit up my face as well as I began to walk past the many tables to get to them. Emmett was sitting with his precious football team, and it appeared that they were comparing the cheerleaders that were sitting with them. I couldn't help but smirk. He would get in _so_ much trouble if Grandma found out about that… Lucky for him I wouldn't tell. Edward was sitting with is group for his final project, stealing glances at Bella every now and then. I smiled to myself at how cute that was as I passed my two older brothers and sat next to Bella across from Rosalie… and Jasper.

"You're late," Bella commented, watching as I began to pull things out of my lunch.

"Yeah. I blame it on Mike Newton." One thing that still amazed me about Bella and Rosalie was that they never ate lunch, making it really awkward for me to eat in front of them. And it appeared that Jasper had the same eating habits… or lack thereof.

Bella laughed a little. "That boy you call a golden retriever that your grandma tried to hook you up with?" she asked. "Why?"

I couldn't help but laugh a little myself. "That's him, all right," I answered. "I fell asleep during the movie in math class, and he didn't think that he should wake me up because I looked so peaceful. I swear, I… Oops!"

As I pulled it out of my bag, the apple I had brought slipped out of my hand and rolled across the table. But Jasper, who was sitting directly across from me, caught it before it could roll off onto the floor.

"A little clumsy, are you?" he asked with a small smile as he handed the apple back to me.

"Most of the time," I answered with an embarrassed laugh as I took the apple from him. My eyes widened when the tips of his fingers landed on my hand for a split second before he pulled it back. They were just as cold as the rest of the family's was…

Though the Cullens were different, I wasn't wary or afraid of them like almost the rest of the school was. I was just curious. That's probably why I was accepted by Bella, Rosalie, and now I guess Jasper so easily. I didn't make a big deal about their differences. After all, I was just as strange as they were.

But I sometimes had to wonder… why _were_ they so different?"

* * *

The rest of the day passed by extremely slowly. As it progressed, my headache got worse and worse, my mind got cloudier and cloudier. I fell asleep in almost all of my classed, but thankfully, I didn't have anything important to do in any of them.

But the one thing that was continually on my mind was how mysterious Jasper was. At some moments, he could be very quiet and brooding while being cranky to everyone around him. But at other times, he was more open and friendly, and he was actually fun to talk to, even though I was still nervous around him. Talk about major mood swings… If I was to get into a friendship with Jasper… or more, though I doubted that would happen since he was _way_ out of my league… I knew that I would be walking on thin ice.

So far, though, I've noticed that his mood depends on his eye color- kinda' like a mood ring. Gold meant that he was in a good mood and black meant that he was in a bad mood. That was pretty easy to remember. But the thing I didn't understand about that was how Jasper's eyes were able to change colors in the first place. My first thought had been colored contacts, but I quickly dismissed it. I could tell when people had contacts in, and he most definitely was not wearing any contacts.

But… what other option was there?

I sighed and shook my head as I closed my locker, putting on my hoodie before I put my backpack over my shoulder. My mind was too scattered right now to focus on something like that. I would try to think of something once I got over my cold.

I walked out of the school building with a group of students and instantly shivered. I hated being sick… I quickly glanced around at all the people still gathered around outside, seeing that Emmett was with the football team and cheerleaders yet again- were the only times he wasn't with them at home, work, and during class? I swear, they were like his life… Edward was still talking to his group members- must have been one important final- and I noticed that Bella, Rosalie, and Jasper were standing together near the school building a fair distance away from the rest of the students. When I looked over in their direction, Jasper looked up and gave me a small smile. I blushed and quickly looked away, speeding my pace as I walked over to Edward and his group of nerds.

"Can I have the keys, Ed?" I asked, seeing that I had interrupted them discussing a day to work on their project. "I'm going to sit in the car to warm up and wait for you."

"Of course, Alice. Here," Edward replied, digging in his pocket and pulling the keys out. "I'll be there soon."

"Thanks." I took the keys from him and left, heading toward the parking lot. I looked both ways like I had been told to do since I was a little girl before stepping off the sidewalk and walking toward Edward's car, which was parked beside Jasper's fancy Volvo.

Suddenly, when I was about halfway into the parking lot, my vision blurred- not like the times when I had those visions. This was different. My world spun around me as I staggered a little, my backpack slipping off my shoulder as Edward's keys fell from my hand into the puddle at my feet. I heard Edward shout my name worriedly, but before I could assure him that I was all right and pick up his keys, I heard a much nearer sound that almost made my heart stop. It was the loud sound of squealing tires, and horrified screams came from behind me.

I looked up wearily and watched as the truck I knew belonged to my friend Tyler came barreling toward me. He had taken the turn too fast, the pavement was slick from all the rain we had this weekend… and I knew that he wasn't going to be able to stop in time. What was with me and almost getting hit by things that moved lately? Except this time, I knew it was going to be a completely different outcome…

The terror-filled shouts grew louder behind me, and I could hear Edward and Emmett above the rest. But I knew that it wouldn't help. They wouldn't be able to do anything in time. My head spun dizzily as I staggered again, and I could hear that Tyler's truck was just about to hit me…

Suddenly, a pair of cold, strong hands grabbed my shoulders tightly, and I stumbled back into a sturdy chest and was held protectively there, and surprisingly, I had been pulled back far enough to avoid being run over by Tyler. I felt the wind of the truck forcefully on my back as it sped past, and I shivered when I realized how close of a call it had been. The arms tightened around me, and I placed my forehead against the person's chest as I tried to calm my breathing.

A heavy silence hung around the school grounds at the near accident, but then a lighter, more cheerful chatter arose since someone had saved my life. Speaking of which… I opened my eyes and slowly looked up into the face of the one who had rescued me, and I gasped as my eyes widened when I realized who it was.

It was Jasper Hale.

Oh, my God… I had to be hallucinating. Why would Jasper ever want to save _me_? But his arms wrapped around me felt real enough, and I could feel the cold radiating from his body. Was it just me, or was he holding his breath?

Okay, so he really did save me. But how in the world had he gotten to me so fast? He was farther away from the parking lot than anyone, along with Bella and Rosalie. There was no way a normal person could have gotten there that fast…

"Are you all right, Alice?" Jasper asked quickly, seeing the paleness of my face and the dazed look in my eyes.

I swallowed, trying to get my voice to work enough to talk to him. "Yeah… I must… still be a little feverish…" I muttered in answer.

Jasper laughed a little. "I wouldn't be a good judge," he said. "My hands are always cold."

I tried to smile back, but I couldn't as all my strength left me. I saw the alarm in Jasper's eyes as my legs collapsed from beneath me, his sturdy arms the only things keeping me from hitting the hard ground. He pulled me closer to support me just as Edward, Emmett, Bella, and Rosalie approached us, all concerned as they asked if I was all right. I wasn't able to answer them though I wanted to assure them that I would be okay, but a small smile still appeared on my face as my eyes closed in Jasper's arms.

**A/N**: All right. There was my version of the famous car scene. But as I said in my first author's note, their relationship goes a lot deeper, which will be explained in the next one, so no worries. I hope you liked this chapter though! Thanks for reading! Your reviews are much appreciated. Thank you!

**Next Chapter**: _Doctor's Orders_


	5. Chapter 4: Doctor's Orders

**Disclaimer**: I still own nothing from the books since all of the characters belong to Stephenie Meyer. I am just borrowing them for this idea.

**A/N**: Okay, I'm back with another update! So, Jasper has now saved Alice, and things will begin to pick up a bit after this chapter. I hope you guys still like this chapter, and please review! If not… well, Alice will get kidnapped and Victoria will kill Jasper. I have no idea where that came from, lol. I was joking. But, I do appreciate reviews, just no flames. Thank you, and enjoy!

_Chapter 4- Doctor's Orders_

"Tyler, you don't have to worry about Alice. You didn't hit her."

"I know, but I just feel that this is somehow my fault!"

"It isn't. But what Alice needs now is rest. She can't get that if she sees you so worked up. So, if you would please step out…"

"There are others in here!"

"Yes, but we're family. I promise that you can see her when she's ready."

I was confused. What were these voices talking about? I recognized them both- the anxious one to be my friend Tyler and the calm, smooth tone as Carlisle. What was going on?

Suddenly, I remembered. Tyler had almost hit me with his truck in the school parking lot when I felt sick, but Jasper had pulled me out of the way in time. So… that meant what now?

Then, I felt the uncomfortable bed sheets above and beneath my arms, and I also smelled the terrible scent of sterilization. Oh, no. That meant that I was in…

I gasped and quickly sat up as my eyes shot open, but that proved to be a bad idea. I groaned and put my face into my hands as my head spun, fighting the urge to be sick. Two pairs of hands were instantly on my shoulders, and I raised my gaze to see that Edward and Emmett were standing over me with worry on their faces.

"Relax, Sis. It's okay," the older of the two said in a surprisingly gentle tone. "Everything's okay."

"You're just fine," Edward added reassuringly. "You're safe."

"If I'm fine, then why am I _here_?" I demanded shortly through my stuffy nose, coughing a little. I hated hospitals…

"Because you need to rest after all of the stress you've been under." Carlisle then walked into my line of vision, his face containing no expression. He was talking in a tone that I had never heard from him directed toward me before. It was formal, professional. "Lie back down now."

I did as he said since I felt like I had no other choice, and Edward and Emmett backed away from the bed and sat in their chairs against the wall. Now that they had moved, I saw that Bella and Rosalie were sitting in two more chairs beside them, and Jasper was standing across the room from them. He was farther away from me than the others, closest to the door, but he still gave me a small smile when he saw that I had calmed down.

"What's wrong with me?" I asked Carlisle quietly, who was still standing over me. One thing that I was grateful about was that I was still wearing the clothes I had picked out for school that morning and not one of those ugly hospital gowns. That was a sign that why I was there wasn't too serious… right?

Carlisle gave me a small smile in return, which also made me feel calmer. "Well, your illness was definitely brought out by the amount of time you spent outside in the rain on Saturday," he told me, to which I smiled with embarrassment. "But it was there full force because of the high level of stress that you've been having lately. Going to school today was just something that your body could not handle yet. I wouldn't worry too much, though. It isn't something that some rest won't take care of. But I would suggest that you don't go to school for the rest of the week so you can fully recover."

"What?!" That horrified me. Not only would I miss my last week of the school year and my couple of finals at the end of the week, but I would also miss my one week of seeing Jasper. I _couldn't_ miss all of that! "No!"

I saw the surprise on Carlisle's face at my outburst, as well as everyone else who was in the room with me, but he recovered quickly. "Alice…"

"Please, just listen," I said, hoping that I could convince him otherwise. "This is finals week. I can't miss those."

"When are they?" Carlisle asked.

"Thursday and Friday," I answered.

Carlisle raised his eyebrow, and I realized that I was trapped. Crap! I had to get out of this. "Okay, how about this?" I decided to try compromise. After all, it was a good thing. "I go to school on those two days _if_ I stay home tomorrow and Wednesday." Okay, so I was cutting down my time to see Jasper this week, but two days were better than none at all. And besides, I was at the Cullens' house enough. I would most likely see him over the summer.

I was relieved to see that Carlisle at least appeared thoughtful about this. "Well," he muttered. "I guess that would be all right as long as you rest those two days and do nothing that will cause you to be stressed."

A broad smile appeared on my face as I sighed with relief. "Thank you, Carlisle!" Edward and Emmett appeared to be just as happy as I was that I was going to be okay, and so did Bella while Rosalie smiled slightly. And was it just me, or did Jasper seem pleased too when I looked over at him?

Suddenly, the door to my hospital room opened, and my face fell instantly. Jasper's eyes flickered when he saw my change in mood, and his gaze shot to who had entered.

"_There_ you are, Mary! Goodness, child…"

"I'm sorry that I almost got hit by a truck, Grandma," I snapped. Yeah, my tone was harsh, but she was the one person I didn't want to see right now.

Surprisingly, she looked alarmed. "You almost got hit by a truck?!" she cried. "I wasn't told _that_!"

"Please, calm down, Mrs. Brandon," Carlisle muttered, stepping forward and placing his hands on her arms. "Alice needs to be in an environment without any excitement right now." Go Carlisle for calling me by my preferred name to her face! But then, I frowned slightly. If I didn't know any better, it felt as though a calm wave had passed through the entire room…

Whatever happened must have worked because my grandmother stopped shouting. "But… she wasn't hit by the truck, was she?" she asked, seeming to be flustered in Carlisle's presence. Well, he _was_ handsome…

Carlisle shook his head. "No. My son, Jasper, was able to pull her out of the way in time." He gestured to him, standing not too far from where they were. "He was close enough to be able to help her."

My grandmother looked over him for a minute before looking back at Carlisle. Had there been slight recognition in her gaze as she looked at my newest friend? But one thing about Carlisle's explanation confused me.

Jasper had been nowhere near me when Tyler's truck nearly hit me.

"Well, that's good." Why didn't my grandmother sound so enthused that he was the one who had saved me? Did she expect something extremely heroic or newsworthy? "How much do I owe you for her stay?"

But Carlisle only smiled. "I can't ask you to pay for this, Mrs. Brandon," he told her. "Alice is like my daughter. You don't owe me anything."

When I heard his statement about me being like his daughter, I beamed. There was a sense of compassion in his words that made them ring true.

"All I ask is that Alice gets plenty of rest over the next two days and doesn't do any physical activity before she goes back to school on Thursday," Carlisle concluded.

"Well, that shouldn't be too hard," my grandmother replied. "She doesn't do much around the house to earn her keep anyway."

I felt my face flush angrily. How _dare_ she say something like that around my friends! She mad me so angry sometimes… I noticed a slight angry flare in Jasper's eyes at her statement, which made the color in my cheeks turn to a shade of embarrassment.

Carlisle didn't say anything in response to that, but he slightly nodded to her before he turned to me. "Well, I think it'll be fine if you went home, Alice," he said with an encouraging smile, which made me feel better as he took my hand and helped me out of bed before giving me a quick hug. "Make sure you get some rest."

That's when I realized who I was going home with. _"Please don't send me home with that woman!"_ I begged silently, hoping that he would understand the urgent message. She was the cause of all my stress. Wasn't I supposed to get _away_ from the stress triggers?

But it did little good. Carlisle gave me a small, sad smile as Emmett came over to me and picked me up into his arms, and I had to quickly put my arms around his neck to keep my balance. "Your chariot awaits, my lady," he teased with a playful smile as he began to walk toward the door with Edward behind us. I looked back into the room to see Jasper one last time, to thank him for saving my life, but I only got a glimpse of him before we entered the hallway, leaving him behind me.

* * *

My eyes slowly opened when I heard a knock on my bedroom door. I slowly raised my head off my pillow, blinking as I forced my eyes to focus. "Come on in," I muttered, my voice still thick with sleep.

The door opened and revealed Emmett standing in the doorway. School must have finally been over. "Are you up for a visitor, Al?" he asked.

I frowned with confusion. Who would be visiting me? "Someone's here?" Wow, my voice was cracking terribly.

Emmett nodded, a somewhat sympathetic glint in his eye. "Yeah," he said. "You can see her if you want… if Edward will part with her, that is."

It was then that I knew who my visitor was. "Yeah, send her in," I told him with a smile, suddenly feeling a lot more cheerful.

"Alrighty then." Emmett smiled when he saw that I seemed happy that I had some company, and he quickly walked away from the door in the direction of the stairs. "Ed, let her go so she can see Alice!" I heard him shout. "She's who she's here for, not you!"

I couldn't help but laugh a little as I sat up and waited for my best friend to come up. She appeared a moment later with a smile on her face as she sat down on the bed next to me. I hadn't even heard her footsteps on the stairs…

"So, how was your first day of school?" Bella asked, giving me a quick hug.

"Boring," I told her with a smile of my own. "All I did was sleep, but I really did need it. I'm just glad I only have one more day of staying home. I can't wait to see you guys again."

"That's understandable. We miss you too."

"How did you get here anyway?" I asked, seeing by my clock that it was only about ten minutes after school let out. Bella didn't drive. She must not have even gone home… "Did Emmett or Edward bring you?"

Bella shook her head. "No. Jazz actually dropped me off before he headed me home," she answered. "He couldn't stay, but he wanted to let you know that he hopes you feel better soon. Oh, and Rose does too, of course."

I was surprised. That was quite a drive. "Why couldn't he stay too? Is something wrong?"

"Jazz… just isn't feeling too well," Bella explained hesitantly, almost as if she was trying to find the right words. "He's not feeling like himself."

"Oh, no. I didn't give him my cold or something, did I?"

"No, no. This is different," Bella told me quickly. "Don't worry. He'll be better by Thursday. He'll be picking me up when I leave, actually."

I really hoped that what she said was right and that I hadn't given Jasper my cold. After all, we _were_ pretty close when he saved me from that truck… I would feel terrible if that was the case after he saved my life. Then again, I couldn't picture anyone in the Cullen family getting sick. They just seemed to… perfect.

"Okay, so the other reason why I'm here is this." Bella reached into her bag she always carried with her and pulled out a packet of white paper. I took it from her, but I couldn't get my eyes to focus completely on the words. "Edward and Emmett already have one, so I thought that I should bring you one too. Rose, Jazz, and I are going, as are Carlisle and Esme. We're hoping that you and your brothers can go too."

"What is it?" I asked, looking back up at her.

"It's an information packet and permission form for the Montana trip this summer," Bella answered. "The school does it every couple of years or so, so you weren't here for the last one. It's where the school goes to a camp in Montana owned by a family from the La Push reservation not too far from here. It lasts for the entire summer. We leave next week."

"This sounds great!" I replied, but my tone was slightly downcast. "But I know that there's a cost. How much is it?"

Bella frowned. "One hundred and fifty. That's for transportation and cabin rental. Everything else is provided by the camp."

_One hundred and fifty?!_ There was no way that would be even remotely possible. Emmett for sure could go. He was eighteen, so he could sign the permission slip himself. And he also had a job, so he could pay the fee himself. As for Edward, our grandmother would sign the slip and pay the fee without question since he seemed to be her favorite grandchild. As for me… well, let's just say that Grandma's had something against me since that brief period I ran away on Saturday. Her excuse would be she could only afford to pay for one of us, and she wouldn't even bother to look at the permission slip…

"That sounds like a lot of fun, Bella, but I don't think I'm going to be able to go," I muttered with defeat.

Bella looked hurt as well. "What?" she asked. "Why not? Everyone else is going. We can't leave you all by yourself this summer!"

"I know, but there's no way that my grandma's going to pay for this," I answered her, putting the packet down on my pillow. "Emmett can pay his own way, and she'll pay for Edward. But not for me. I can't come up with that kind of money myself either. Sorry, Bells. I just don't see a way for me to go. But you make sure you have fun, and try to convince my brothers to go too, okay?"

I could see the sadness in Bella's face, but before she could pursue the conversation, her cell phone rang from her pocket. "Hello?" she asked quietly into the small, silver device. "All right, I'll be right out." She flipped the phone closed and put it back into her pocket.

"Jazz is waiting for me outside. I've gotta' go," Bella told me, still seeming troubled. "Feel better, Alice. I'll see you on Thursday."

"Okay. Bye, Bella. Thanks for coming." I hugged her goodbye before she got to her feet and watched her leave my room, shutting the door behind her. Once she was gone, I got out of bed to run to the window and looked outside.

Jasper was sitting in his silver Volvo, waiting patiently for his sister to leave the house. Though he was farther away, I could see that his eyes were closer today, a little closer to black. Was that why he wasn't feeling like himself?

Then, his eyes shot up quickly and landed directly on me, almost as if he knew that I was there watching him. I held my breath when I met his gaze, standing completely still. I suddenly felt as though I was a deer trapped in headlights, a prey being cornered by the predator…

But then, Jasper moved his eyes away from mine when Bella opened the passenger door of the door and climbed in. They immediately began to discuss something that must have been pretty serious judging by their expressions, and their conversation continued as Jasper backed out of my driveway and drove out of sight.

When I could no longer see the car, I went back to my bed and collapsed onto it, sighing heavily. The chance to spend the entire summer with Jasper and the rest of the Cullen family… gone. Gone because my grandmother was kinda' hating me at the moment. I normally didn't complain, but it just was not fair. All of my closest friends- Bella, Rosalie, Carlisle, Esme, and even Jasper- and probably Emmett and Edward were going to be gone for the whole summer while I was left at him with my grandmother. I really, really hated this…

Tears burned in my eyes as I threw the packet for the Montana trip onto my dresser and laid down under my covers, and that was where it lay discarded for the rest of the night.

* * *

I slowly opened my eyes when the pale sunlight hit them the next morning. What a strange dream I had… In it, Jasper had come in through my window in the middle of the night, placing the packet for the Montana trip that Bella had given me after school back on my dresser as if he had taken it. I whispered his name with confusion, and he looked over at me as though he had clearly heard me and gave me a small smile as he covered me back up with the blanket. "I'll see you on Thursday," he told me quietly before once again leaving through the window, shutting it behind him as though he was never there.

As I said, it was very strange.

I sat up even more slowly, rubbing my eyes as I yawned and stretched out my cramped muscles. I then looked wearily around my room, my gaze finally landing on the packet that Bella had given me yesterday when she stopped by- the packet that robbed me of the time I could spend with my friends and brothers. Of course, Jasper was included in the "friend" category. Wow, I was thinking about him a lot lately…

But then, my eyes narrowed in confusion. There was something different about that packet, but it was so subtle that I had barely noticed it. I slowly reached over and picked up the packet, seeing that the last sheet- the permission form- had been torn off and written on. Tossing the rest of the packet to the floor, I picked up the permission form, seeing that there was a name signed on the bottom where the guardian name was supposed to go. I gasped, and my eyes instantly filled up with tears when I saw the name.

_Carlisle Cullen._

On the back of the form was a note to the principal authorizing the permission slip- somehow, my grandmother's signature was on the bottom of the note stating that Carlisle had the right to give his consent- and I knew that this would allow me to go to Montana. The only thing I needed now was… No, I couldn't even dream of thinking for hoping that. It would be too much. My eyes slowly and hesitantly traveled back to my dresser, and they widened in surprise when I saw that there was an envelope and a folded piece of paper still sitting in the spot the packet had been. I picked up the envelope first since it was on top and cautiously opened it, and the tears fell from my eyes when I saw what was inside.

One hundred and fifty dollars.

I couldn't believe that Carlisle would do this much for me. What had I done to deserve this? I put the envelope containing the money on top of the permission slip beside me and picked up the folded piece of paper, seeing that it was a note to me from Carlisle, which read:

_Alice,_

_When Bella told me that your grandmother probably wasn't going to give you the money you needed to go on this trip, I thought that I would help you along a little. After all, you can't be all alone during the summer, and we would all very much like for you to come with us to Montana. It would give you the chance to relax and just have fun with your friends and family, which you need right now. From what I saw when you were at the hospital, your grandmother is the cause of a lot of your stress, and that's what you need to be away from. Please don't consider it an act of charity- consider it "doctor's orders." I'll see you soon!_

Carlisle

_P.S. Bella and Rosalie want to take you shopping for supplies in Port Angeles on Sunday. Don't worry about money. We'll cover it. You could just spend the night with us if you wish, and we'll take you to the school to leave for the trip on Monday._

Tears were running quickly don my cheeks by the time I finished reading his note. How could I accept such an act of kindness? But he _did_ say to call it "doctor's orders…" Too bad I wouldn't be able to get this to school until Thursday.

Or would I?

My wet eyes quickly traveled to the clock on my nightstand, and I saw that Edward and Emmett didn't leave for school for another five minutes yet. Perfect! I grabbed the envelope with money in it and the permission slip before I jumped out of bed, nearly stumbling in my haste due to the dizziness. I ran out the door and down the hallway, taking the steps two at a time. I found both of my brothers in the kitchen as they prepared to leave for school, and the shock on their faces at the sight of me up so early and practically sobbing was priceless.

"What…?"

"Do you guys have your stuff for the Montana trip?" I asked, interrupting Emmett.

Emmett and Edward exchanged glances. "Yeah. We have the money and forms signed, but we weren't going to bring them because Bella told us that you probably weren't going to go," Edward answered. "We weren't going to leave you home alone."

"No, guys! Bring them!" I shouted, shoving my form and money into Edward's hands since he was closest. "Bring them! I'm going!"

Edward looked shocked as his eyes moved down to what was now in his hands. "How…?"

"I don't know." I truly didn't. The more I thought about it, the more I was confused about how Carlisle had gotten these to me without me or my brothers knowing about it. Oh, well. A miracle is a miracle. "Just get your stuff!"

"I'm on it." Emmett rushed out of the kitchen and down the hall. Clearly, they had kept them together.

"Alice, how are you able to go on the trip?" Edward asked. He was suspicious, and rightfully so.

"No idea," I answered honestly. "It's legal though, don't worry. But no time to explain now."

There truly wasn't. Emmett came back into the kitchen at that moment and handed the two forms and payments to Edward. "Don't worry. We'll turn this in for you, Al," he told me as he picked up his backpack and keys for his Jeep as he headed for the door. Edward was right behind him. "Have a good day!"

"Thanks, Em!" I shouted after them as they ran to their respective vehicles. "Have a good day, guys!"

I watched them drive away, wiping the tears from my eyes, before shutting the door and sinking weakly into a chair at the kitchen table. I didn't know how I was going, but what mattered now was that I would be going to Montana for the summer.

**A/N**: All right, there's a bit of a happy ending. The rest of the story is pretty much going to be taking place at this summer camp, which is also how I'm throwing the wolves in. That will start in a few chapters. First, they have to go to Port Angeles… I hope you enjoyed it! I'm going to do something a little different here too. Besides just giving you the next chapter name, I'm going to give you a little preview of it. There will be a small part from each section divided up by little x's. I think you'll see it. So, thanks for reading! Your reviews are much appreciated. Thank you!

**Next Chapter**: _Hiding_

_"How did you do that, anyway?"Jasper looked confused. "Do what, Alice?"_

_"Get to me so fast when Tyler's truck was about to hit me," I elaborated. "You were farther away from the parking lot than anyone else. How did you do it?"_

_The calm that had been on Jasper's face suddenly disappeared and was replaced with tension. I couldn't explain it, but I suddenly felt very tense myself… "I… I have to go," he said, his eyes moving to the school building. "I'll see you later, all right, Alice?"_

Xxx

_Emmett's smirk disappeared. "Who are you calling a brainless gorilla?" he demanded._

_"Oh, look. It talks," Rosalie replied with feigned surprise. "Can you stand on your head too?"_

Xxx

_Though… I hadn't realized how far away Rosalie's car was, especially at night. I hurried my pace a little on the dark street, my anxiety rising with every step. This wasn't a big deal. There were still a few people out here. Nothing to be afraid of, Alice…_

_But how many stories have I heard on the news of girls my age being murdered when they were off by themselves at night? Okay, Alice. Stop. You're freaking yourself out! Just take deep breaths. You're almost there. Then, you can talk all you want to Bella on your phone as you walk back to meet them while you beat yourself up about how stupid you are for going off on your own. Yeah, that sounds like a good plan._


	6. Chapter 5: Hiding

**Disclaimer**: If I was Stephenie Meyer, would I really be writing this story? Actually, I probably would since Jasper and Alice are my favorite characters. So… never mind. But, I don't own them!

**A/N**: Ah! I got a bunch of new reviewers! Thank you, you guys! You rock! Oh, and you have saved Jasper and Alice… for now… Lol. Thank you so, so much! I will continue to do the preview thing at the end of each chapter since you seemed to like that. Keep up with the awesome reviews, you guys! Here we go with this chapter! There is some Alice and Jasper interaction in here, but not nearly as much as the next chapter will have. Still, I think you'll enjoy what's here, plus the Emmett and Rosalie interaction!

_Chapter 5- Hiding_

For me, Thursday didn't come soon enough. I was so anxious to see the Cullen siblings to tell them how grateful I was that they helped me to go on the Montana trip and have them thank Carlisle for me. It was going to be so much fun!

But besides my excitement to talk to them about that, I was also anxious to speak with Jasper. I had never gotten the chance to tell him how thankful I was that he saved me from getting hit by Tyler's truck. He probably knew, but it was still good to express it in words.

When Thursday finally arrived, I was up and ready even before Edward and Emmett since I was so anxious to get to school. I was all smiles as I waited in the kitchen for my brothers to get ready, and I was in the passenger seat of Edward's car what felt like hours later.

"I know you're excited to get to school and that you're feeling better, Alice, but take it easy," Edward cautioned as he drove in the direction of our school. "It's only your first day back."

There was that overprotective brother thing again. "I know, but tomorrow's the last day!" I said cheerfully. "And in three days after that, we leave for Montana!"

Edward sighed as he turned into the school parking lot. "That was a very nice thing that Carlisle did for you, not to mention a lot of money," he commented quietly, almost thoughtfully, as he parked the car. "Have you thanked him for it yet?"

"No," I frowned. "I tried calling his work extension all day yesterday, but he wasn't there. Or at home."

Before Edward could reply, a familiar car came and parked next to me. I smiled and waved at the driver, who gave me a small smile and a slight nod back. "Hmm, Jasper's back today, I see," my brother muttered, watching as he reached forward to turn the radio off. I wondered for a minute what kind of music he liked.

I turned to Edward with surprise. "Jasper wasn't here yesterday?" I asked. Another thing I noticed was that his eyes were a beautiful shade of light gold today- he was in a good mood.

"No."

That was strange. Not only was Carlisle not at the hospital, but Jasper wasn't at school either. Where had they gone?

Then, I noticed Jasper get out of the car out of the corner of my eye and grab his backpack from the backseat before walking toward the school. "I'll see you later, Ed," I muttered, grabbing my backpack from the floor by my feet before I got out of the car and ran after Jasper. This would be the perfect chance to talk to him- he was alone.

"Jasper, wait!"

He stopped and turned his head, waiting for me to catch up to him. By the time I ran over, I was out of breath and had to bend over to try to catch it again. I couldn't even say a word!

Luckily, I didn't have to start.

"We have got to stop meeting like this, Alice," Jasper joked, a small smile on his face.

I looked up at him and then around the area, seeing that we were standing in the middle of the parking lot- almost at the exact spot where Tyler's truck had nearly hit me. "Yeah. Maybe it would be a good idea if we got out of the parking lot," I muttered.

"That would probably be a good idea," Jasper agreed, though his tone held slight humorous sarcasm. I liked that… He then took my arm and proceeded to lead me over to the sidewalk where it would be safer and smiled down at me. "So, you wanted to talk?" he asked, releasing my arm.

"I did," I told him once I could breathe normally again. I ignored Edward watching us carefully as he passed and went inside the school. "What I wanted to say was-!"

"Alice!"

I sighed when I was interrupted, watching as none other than Mike Newton approached Jasper and I. "Oh, my God, Alice, I heard about what happened after school on Monday from Tyler! Are you all right?"

"I'm standing here, aren't I?" I retorted with an eyeroll. When he didn't reply, I sighed. "Yes, Mike. I'm fine. Jasper here is the one who saved my life."

Though Jasper tried to be polite and gave him a smile in greeting, Mike shot him a dark look. Was that… jealousy? "Well, I'm glad you're all right." See? That _was_ jealousy! No "thank you" to Jasper from Mike today. But I had to admit I had a funny image of Mike running toward the parking lot to save me like Jasper had done. "Are you going on the Montana trip, Alice?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah!" I answered with enthusiasm, my frustration gone at his sudden change in topic. "I'm so excited!"

"Me too!" Mike agreed cheerfully, his jealousy also gone. "Just think, we'll be spending three whole months together!" My smile instantly vanished at that thought. "Well, I'll see you around, Alice!"

Jasper laughed as Mike ran into the school building and at the crestfallen look that must have been on my face at that moment. "I take it that you don't like him? That's your golden retriever friend, right?"

"He's my friend, but he can get really annoying a lot of them time," I told him with a slight laugh of my own. How bland and normal mine sounded compared to his… "He's had a crush on me for the past two years, but every time he's asked me out, I've said no."

"How come?" Jasper asked. He actually seemed curious.

I sighed. "Well, golden retrievers aren't really my type," I answered with a smile.

Jasper returned the smile. "What is your type?"

"_You meet my criteria one hundred and ten percent!"_ I thought, but there was no way I was going to say that out loud. That would be totally inappropriate. But I still had to think of something to tell him. "I'm not really sure," I thoughtfully. "Someone that my grandma doesn't try to hook me up with, I suppose."

When I saw Jasper's raised eyebrow, I laughed. "Just kidding," I assured him. "But I'm not really sure what my type is, or if I even really have one. I guess I'll know who the right person for me is when I find them."

"Everyone does."

That statement caught me off guard coming from Jasper. I looked up at him, and I saw that there were no traces of sarcasm or humor in his features as he looked back at me. Just sincerity… "I guess… for the past two years, I've been hesitant to get into a serious relationship," I muttered. Why was I revealing this to him when I had only met him this weekend? "I would almost say scared."

"Why is that?"

I thought about my answer for a minute, but then I shook my head when I felt tears heading for my eyes. "Nothing…"

I gasped quietly when I suddenly felt a calming wave move through me as my tears vanished, and I looked up at Jasper curiously. There was a small smile on his face, and I couldn't help but smile back.

"So, there was something you wanted to say before we were interrupted by your golden retriever?" Jasper asked, glancing at his watch.

Oh, that's right! I had almost forgotten about that! "I just wanted to say thank you for pulling me out of the way of Tyler's truck on Monday," I answered. "I never got the chance to do so properly. Without you, I wouldn't be here right now."

Jasper laughed a little. "You're welcome, Alice," he replied. "But you didn't have to thank me, you know."

"I know. It's just a nice thing to do when you're grateful." I looked up at him for a minute, finally deciding on asking the question that I've been wanting to ask since Monday. "How did you do that, anyway?"

Jasper looked confused. "Do what, Alice?"

"Get to me so fast when Tyler's truck was about to hit me," I elaborated. "You were farther away from the parking lot than anyone else. How did you do it?"

The calm that had been on Jasper's face suddenly disappeared and was replaced with tension. I couldn't explain it, but I suddenly felt very tense myself… "I… I have to go," he said, his eyes moving to the school building. "I'll see you later, all right, Alice?"

And with that, he walked away from me and quickly blended in with the rest of the students going into the school. It was at that moment that I knew that Jasper was hiding something.

* * *

"I'm so glad that you get to come shopping with us on Sunday, Alice!"

I shut my locker at the end of the school day, surprised to see that Rosalie was standing beside me. I hadn't even heard her approach… "I am too!" I agreed. If it was one thing that I loved to do, it was shopping, especially with friends. "Edward and Emmett have things that will be good for the trip since they've been to summer camps before, but I never have. I'll need a lot of stuff!"

Rosalie laughed. "You're going to need more than that," she told me. "We're also going to have to find you a nice dress."

A _dress_?! Why? It was a _camp_? Okay, I had some dresses at home that would be appropriate for a summer in Forks, but not in Montana, and I had some that would be appropriate for a Phoenix summer, but not for Montana. I couldn't get rid of those, though, because of the memories… "Why do I need a dress for a summer camp?" I asked with confusion.

"On the last night of the camp, they always hold a dance," Rosalie answered. "You're going to need a dress for the dance, especially if you have a date."

I blushed. "But… but what if I don't have a date?"

Rosalie smiled and gave me a wink. "Oh, I think you will."

Before I could ask her what she meant, another familiar voice came from behind us. "I thought that you only hung out with the cool people, Al!"

I turned around, as did Rosalie, and saw that Emmett was there, a blonde cheerleader that I knew was a total airhead under his arm. "Emmett…" I began to mutter in warning.

But I was too late. Rosalie turned to the cheerleader with my brother, a broad but cruel smile on her face. "Kristi, I didn't think that brainless gorillas were your type," she said sweetly, though her tone was dripping with sarcasm.

Emmett's smirk disappeared. "Who are you calling a brainless gorilla?" he demanded.

"Oh, look. It talks," Rosalie replied with feigned surprise. "Can you stand on your head too?"

I put my hand to my head and sighed. This was it…

Emmett released the cheerleader and moved forward to stand before Rosalie angrily. She didn't back down or seem afraid at all, though she was much smaller than Emmett. "Why, you little-!"

"What are you going to do?" Rosalie asked with an air of superiority. "Or aren't you capable of thinking of anything except for which rocks to hit together?"

My brother's face contorted with fury. "At least I'm not a self-conceded, arrogant bitch!" he snapped.

That seemed to strike a nerve. "How dare you!" Rosalie growled. "You'd better learn your place before someone puts you there."

"Oh, I'm so scared. What are you going to do?" Emmett taunted. "Cast a spell on me?"

Before Rosalie could reply, Edward and Bella pushed their way through the crowd that had gathered and approached their siblings. "Come on, Emmett," my brother muttered, pulling on his arm while Bella held Rosalie back. "You're making a scene…"

Emmett didn't budge immediately, but when he finally did, he continued to glare at Rosalie until she was out of sight. Once they saw that the argument wasn't going to continue to escalate, the students around us dispersed, muttering with disappointment.

"I'm sorry about my brother, Rosalie," I said, turning to her. Bella was still clinging to her older sister's arm, and she looked nervous. "He can be a huge jerk, but he won't actually cause any harm."

"That's okay, Alice," Rosalie replied. Now that Emmett was gone, she appeared to be calmer. "But it's not me you need to be concerned about. It's him."

There was something about the tone of her voice and the way her eyes shone that made me involuntarily shiver. Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned had a whole new meaning when it came to Rosalie…

"Well, Alice, have a good night," Rosalie continued as though nothing unordinary had happened as she began to walk away with Bella. "And on Sunday, we'll pick you up at seven."

* * *

"So, I take it that your grandmother wasn't too happy that you're going on the Montana trip?" Bella asked quietly from the passenger seat of Rosalie's red convertible, which of course had the top up.

It was finally Sunday, and I was in the back seat of the car with a thin line of tears in my eyes. I had been packing up the things that I could for the camping trip, such as all of the clothes and other necessities I would need, when my grandmother walked in my room. I told her the truth about how I was going to Montana, and she began to yell at me and question how I was able to go. I didn't tell her that Carlisle had been the once to completely make it possible, but I told her that I had help from another source and that I was going whether she liked it or not.

Having heard the shouting, Edward and Emmett came and quickly defended me, telling her that it wasn't fair that they could go while I couldn't. The yelling escalated, and since I was done with my small amount of packing, Edward grabbed my arm and ran me down the stairs and to his car, where he immediately proceeded to drive me to the Cullen household. Though there had been an hour left until seven, I spent it there while Edward went back to our house to help Emmett handle our grandmother.

"She… wasn't too happy," I replied, blinking my tears away. "But I don't care. I don't care what she thinks…"

Rosalie smirked from the driver's seat. "I suppose she didn't like it when I forged her signature, huh?" she asked.

I shook my head. "No. She didn't even know… Wait. _You're_ the one who forged her signature?!" I was shocked. "How?"

"She signed the release forms to get you out of the hospital, did she not?" Rosalie glanced back at me in the rear-view mirror. "Carlisle got a hold of them, and… well, you know the rest."

"That was amazing! It looked exactly like hers!" I suddenly had a whole new level of respect for Rosalie.

Rosalie smiled. "Well, I try."

I smiled in return, and then I pulled my cell phone out of my pocket when I heard a beeping noise that told me I had a text message. It was from Edward.

_Grandma's saying now how she doesn't care about what you do, but I can tell she's furious. She's about ready to kick you out of the house. Don't worry about that, though. Since Emmett's eighteen, he's been looking on the Internet for homes he can afford, which he's doing right now. He said that if he found something, we could-!_

I got interrupted from reading that text message by another one. This time, it was from Emmett.

_Ha! In your face, Grandma! I found one! I found a house that I can afford to keep only a couple of blocks away! This is it, Al! Once we get back from Montana, we don't have to live with Grandma anymore! When we come back to Forks, you and Ed are going to come live with me! Well, if Ed's done being a Grandma's Boy, that is… But we did it, Sis! We're outta' here!_

My smile was so huge after reading his message I thought that it was going to fly off my face it hurt so much. But before I could start replying, I got another text message from Edward.

_I am not a Grandma's Boy… Anyway, I was going to suggest you ask Carlisle if you could possibly stay with them for a couple of days after the trim until we sorted something out, but now that won't be necessary since Emmett's on his way to check this house at as we speak. We'll let you know when things are final._

I immediately began to text back.

_OMG, really? That's unbelievable! You guys are the best! I love you!_

I sent the message to both of my brothers, to which I got quick responses from both of, "I love you too."

"What's going on?" Bella wondered from the seat in front of me, able to see my change in mood.

"Emmett's looking into buying a house right now," I told her, the smile still on my face. "If it works out, I won't be living with my grandma when I get back from Montana."

"That's wonderful, Alice!" Bella said enthusiastically, the smile on her face mirroring my own. "I know that you've been wanting to get away from your grandmother for some time."

I nodded in agreement. "Yeah, especially since Saturday."

Bella didn't say anything to that, and the rest of the drive was silent except for the radio, which was not playing Kevin Rudolf's "Let it Rock." I didn't mind the lack of conversation, however, since I was so thrilled about the news of Emmett finding his house and that I would no longer be living with my grandmother. It was a strange feeling, but it also gave me a new, and foreign, sense of freedom that I had never had before.

Rosalie made it to Port Angeles in record time. It was close to seven-thirty when she found a spot in the parking lot and shut the car off. The sun was completely behind the darkened clouds as night approached, but there were still many people walking up and down the pier as they decided what to shop for. Rosalie then turned to look at us excitedly. "Are you guys ready?" she asked.

I nodded with excitement, but Bella didn't seem to share my enthusiasm about shopping. She never had, even when I dragged her along with me… The three of us then climbed out of the car, and after Rosalie locked it, we began to walk toward the pier.

Suddenly, Bella stopped and put her hand on her sister's arm. "Rose, isn't that Royce King?" she whispered.

Rosalie's eyes flared dangerously when she saw who she was pointing out, and I suddenly felt nervous. She looked even more frightening than when she had glared at Emmett on Thursday, and I feared for the man that they were speaking of. I followed their gazes and saw that they were looking at a handsome man with black hair and dark eyes surrounded by five other guys, and when he saw that we were looking at him, he sent a wink in our direction.

"Don't even get me started on him," Rosalie growled with frustration. Was it just me, or was there something in her tone that was… inhuman? "Come one, let's just go. Ignore him. Maybe he'll leave us alone."

I followed behind the sisters, glancing back one last time at Royce before we turned a corner. I then hurried my pace a little to walk beside Bella so I wouldn't be the last in line, who was a couple of steps behind an infuriated Rosalie. "Who's Royce?" I wondered quietly so Rosalie hopefully wouldn't hear me.

"He and Rosalie used to be together a few years ago," Bella told me, seeming almost hesitant. "Their relationship didn't turn out so well, so she broke it off. He was expecting too much of her, and it got a little… violent. Royce is still mad at her for it, but he doesn't dare get too close to her because Jasper was furious at him, and he knows that he could always come after him if he hurts Rose. That's the thing about Jazz. He may seem calm and quiet, but get him angry and you'll want to stay as far away as possible."

Wow, so Jasper was protective too? That was a good trait, one that I admired. But thinking of him made me disheartened. He'd been avoiding me lately, ever since I asked him how he had saved me from being hit by Tyler's truck. And even when I did see him, he didn't talk to me. He merely smiled and said hello to be polite, but then he would instantly avert his gaze. It was almost like he was trying to avoid me…

I didn't get to ponder this too much longer, though, before we turned into a dress shop. It felt like hours, though I enjoyed looking at all of the different styles, before I found a dress that was just right for me. Though it was a little pricy, Rosalie assured me that it wasn't a big deal and I shouldn't feel bad about getting it. In a way, I was relieved because I loved it, being a beautiful shade of royal purple- my favorite color. It was somewhat low-cut, but not too low with thin shoulder straps, going down a little past my knees. There was a slit that ran a little ways up my right leg and a medium-sized triangular cut that revealed my left side. It was a perfect fit, especially since my grandmother would kill me if she saw me wearing it. And to go along with the dress, Rosalie helped me to pick out a pair of black heels that made me only a little taller than I already was.

Since I was done, I then helped Rosalie and Bella pick out their dresses for the occasion. For Rosalie, it was a scarlet dress that had a lower v-neck than mine but flowed down to about the same length. Thin straps held it up that tied around her neck, and a lot of her back showed. Of course, she looked stunning in it…

For Bella, it was a light blue dress with sleeves that went down to her elbows and fell to a little below her knees. There was a small v-neck in it, but it was modest. Both her and Rosalie assured me that they had shoes at home that would fit the dresses they chose.

It was completely dark now as we walked out of the dress shop, but there were still small groups of people walking about on the pier. I gasped then, suddenly realizing that something was missing. "Crap!"

"What's wrong, Alice?" Bella asked.

"Nothing's wrong, exactly," I answered her. "I just left my phone in Rose's car. I have to go back and get it in case Emmett or Edward try to get a hold of me. Why don't I bring the dressed back too while I'm at it?"

"Okay, Alice, but why don't we go with you?" Rosalie suggested. "It's dark now, and you probably shouldn't be off by yourself."

"Nonsense, I'll be fine," I told them, taking their dresses from them. "I'm only going to the car. I'll have my phone soon, so I can easily meet up with you guys."

"Well… all right," Rosalie muttered, though I could tell it was against her better judgment as she gave me the keys. "We'll be in the camping equipment store just one block down and across the street." She pointed to the general area of the store.

"All right. I'll meet you there soon." I walked away from them then, humming to myself as I turned the corner. This wasn't going to be a bit deal. I've been through worse.

Though… I hadn't realized how far away Rosalie's car was, especially at night. I hurried my pace a little on the dark street, my anxiety rising with every step. This wasn't a big deal. There were still a few people out here. Nothing to be afraid of, Alice…

But how many stories have I heard on the news of girls my age being murdered when they were off by themselves at night? Okay, Alice. Stop. You're freaking yourself out! Just take deep breaths. You're almost there. Then, you can talk all you want to Bella on your phone as you walk back to meet them while you beat yourself up about how stupid you are for going off on your own. Yeah, that sounds like a good plan.

Finally, the parking lot came into sight, and I practically ran over to Rosalie's car. There were only a couple of other cars scattered throughout the lot now, and there weren't any other people in sight. Man, why did she have to park beneath a street lamp? I stood out like a beacon to any creepy psychopaths with my pale skin and dark clothing.

I fumbled with the keys in my anxiousness, but I was finally able to unlock the car. I put the dresses over one arm as I searched the seat I had sat in for my cell phone. I quickly found it and saw that I had two text messages and one voice message, but I stuffed it in my hoodie pocket since I wasn't going to check them right then and there. I then laid the dresses out carefully, one on top of the other, in the backseat with the shoes on top, leaving myself no place to sit, before I shut the door and locked the car up again.

I just put the keys in my jeans' pocket when a hand grabbed me roughly by the shoulder, spun me around, and pushed me back against the car. I grunted with the pain from the impact, my mind still in shock so that I couldn't scream, as my eyes slowly adjusted to see the person who the hand belonged to. My eyes widened with fear as a gasp escaped from me when I recognized the man who now stood in front of me.

It was Royce King.

**A/N**: Yep, time for a cliffie. Lol. But that's how I threw Royce in. Don't worry. Rosalie will explain more about in a later chapter. So, I hope you liked this chapter! And as I said in my first author's note, there will be a lot of Jasper/Alice interaction in the next chapter, so you can look forward to that. Uh, let's see… Enjoy the preview!

**Next Chapter**: My Own Personal Superhero

Oh, my God, I am going to die!

_That was the first thought on my mind as I looked up at the cruel smirk that Royce King was giving me. Damn it, why didn't I bring my pepper spray? That was the one thing I could thank my grandmother for- drilling into my head that a girl of my age in our society needed to carry around pepper spray for protection. She even got me my own! Damn it! Go figure, the one time I actually needed it, I didn't have it. Maybe because I thought that since I was going to be with Rosalie and Bella, I wouldn't need my peppery spray. Safety in numbers, right? Yeah, real smart, Alice…_

_I could always bluff my way out of this and _say_ that I had a weapon of some sort. But knowing me, that would just blow up in my face because I couldn't bluff to save my life. Oh, how much meaning that statement had now…_

Xxx

_Suddenly, I screamed and skidded to a stop. Jasper was directly in front of me, but he didn't look concerned. Instead, his darker eyes were cruel as they moved to Royce and the others. "Don't worry, Alice," he whispered, his tone reflecting the cold look in his eyes. "They won't bother you again."_

_Something about his promise terrified me, and I watched with fear as Jasper rushed forward to face the approaching men. Royce was first, and I screamed as I watched Jasper bite into his neck._

Xxx

I_ blinked in surprise when I felt something cold touch my back, and I saw that Jasper had reached over and was now calmly rubbing it. "I'm sorry about your parents, Alice. I had no idea," he muttered, the sympathy he felt showing through in his golden eyes. "But that would explain a lot of the conflicting emotions I'm getting from you."_

_"What do you mean?" I looked over at him curiously._

_Jasper sighed. "Well, I've always been in tune to the emotions of others, and I can 'read them,' per se," he explained. "Normally, it comes pretty easily. But with you, it's more complicated. You have so many emotions running rampant within you that they often conflict. I can never get a clear reading from you."_

_"Is that bad?" I felt a little nervous as I waited for his diagnosis._

_"I wouldn't say that," Jasper told me, and I sighed with relief. "I would say it's more…_ interesting _than anything. It's a good challenge for me. I haven't encountered anything like you before."_


	7. Chapter 6: My Own Personal Superhero

**Disclaimer**: Nope, none of the characters are mine! Just the idea.

**A/N**: Hey, thanks for the reviews! Since today might be the last day I can update for a while, I thought I'd give you another chapter since I'm not sure when the next time I can update is. The songs I use in here are "Sympathy for the Devil" and "Patience" by Guns N' Roses, which I also don't own. So, thanks so much, and here's a chapter I know you're going to like since there will be a lot of Japer/Alice interaction. Personally, it's one of my favorite chapters, so I think you'll like it too. Enjoy!

_Chapter 6- My Own Personal Superhero_

_Oh, my God, I am going to die!_

That was the first thought on my mind as I looked up at the cruel smirk that Royce King was giving me. Damn it, why didn't I bring my pepper spray? That was the one thing I could thank my grandmother for- drilling into my head that I a girl of my age in our society needed to carry around pepper spray for protection. She even got me my own. Damn it! Go figure, the one time I actually need it, I didn't have it. Maybe because I thought that I would be with Rosalie and Bella, I wouldn't need my pepper spray. Safety in numbers, right? Yeah, real smart, Alice…

I could always bluff my way out of this and _say_ that I had a weapon of some sort. But knowing me, that would just blow up in my face because I couldn't bluff to save my life. Oh, how much meaning that statement had now…

Hey, Cutie," Royce said with a wink. "I saw you here with my Rosalie."

I bit my tongue to keep from making the comment that I wanted to make so badly. Rosalie didn't belong to _this_ creep. Hell, she didn't belong to anyone. But I thought that it would be in my best interest to stay quiet in this situation.

"She sure was pretty," Royce continued cheerfully. I could smell the alcohol on his breath and fought the urge to be sick. "But once you got to know her, she had bite! You know, it was a night almost exactly like this that we broke up. I'm actually surprised that she still looks so good. Surprised that bitch survived."

_Survived_?! What had he done to her?! I looked up at Royce with a new sense of fear as he laughed, and I could hear more guys laughing around him- he wasn't alone. I tried to swallow the lump that had formed in my throat. What was he going to do to _me_?

"But you know, you're a pretty good looker yourself," Royce muttered, his voice taking on a new tone. "Do you have a name, Girlie?"

I didn't answer. Even if I had wanted to answer, I couldn't have. My voice was stubbornly refusing to work. Then, Royce leaned in close to my face, and I clenched my eyes tightly shut as I turned my head away from him. The stench of his alcohol breath almost made me throw up. "You're afraid," he whispered, using his hand that wasn't occupying my shoulder to grasp my chin and try to turn my face toward him. I whimpered a little as I struggled to resist. "You're much cuter when you're afraid…"

What I did next, I had no intention of doing. It was just sort of a… defensive reflex. But by my own will or not, my foot lashed out and hit Royce in the… well… I think all guys out there can relate to how much pain he was in since I had hit him where it counted. I watched him drop to his knees as his hands fell away from me with a strange sort of satisfaction. I had never dreamed of doing that before, and I had only seen it done in the movies.

But I realized I should probably have taken this time to escape. I began to take a couple of steps away from Rosalie's car before Royce's hand grabbed my ankle. I screamed as I fell to the hard pavement, landing on my right arm. I cringed in pain, my injured arm throbbing. I was just glad that it wasn't broken.

"You're not going anywhere, you bitch," Royce hissed as he got to his feet, pulling me up with him before pushing me into the car again. He raised his right hand as if he meant to strike me, and I closed my eyes tightly and turned my face away from him as I waited to feel the blow.

But it never came. Instead, I heard Royce cry out in surprise, maybe even fear. I cautiously opened my eyes, seeing that a pale hand had grabbed his wrist to stop the strike. Whoever it was then pulled Royce away from me and punched him forcefully in the jaw, and I watched as he fell to the ground. I shivered slightly since I had thought I heard bones shatter in that punch, and I slowly looked up to see who had stopped Royce.

My eyes widened when I saw that it was Jasper.

He looked at me in a concerned way before turning to face the rest of Royce's guys as they came up behind him. I closed my eyes and turned away, not able to watch the rest of the fight as it progressed. I was afraid for Jasper being outnumbered, and I didn't want to see him get hurt. Feeling very weak suddenly since I was out of any immediate danger, I slowly slid down Rosalie's car until I was sitting on the ground. I curled in on myself, shaking as I began to cry. I had never been more afraid before…

Suddenly, a cold hand landed on my shoulder, and I screamed and flinched away, thinking that it was one of Royce's men. The hand moved away from me, but I could sense that he was still there. "Alice, it's all right. You're safe now."

The voice was quiet and gentle- not the one that I had been expecting to hear. I slowly opened my eyes and saw that Jasper was kneeling beside me, his golden eyes appearing concerned as he looked back at me. He was staying in the shadows cast by the car, avoiding the light of the street lamp. But even in the dark, I could see that he didn't have a scratch or a bruise on him. I quickly looked around the parking lot for any signs of Royce or his guys, but I saw that Jasper and I were alone.

"Where are they?" I asked quietly in a trembling voice.

Jasper gave me an encouraging smile. "They're gone," he answered. "They took Royce and ran. Don't worry, Alice. I don't believe that you'll be seeing them again."

I nodded, but a fresh wave of tears came as I began to cry again. Jasper sighed as he slowly, almost cautiously, reached forward and pulled me close to him, rocking me gently. I felt safe in his protective arms, and I quickly began to calm down as I laid my head against his chest. My tears began to flow slowly and then stopped altogether as I tried to settle my breathing. I took a deep breath and found myself calm even more as I inhaled Jasper's subtle scent- autumn leaves with a hint of vanilla. It was a strange combination, but I loved it…

Then, my cell phone began to ring in my hoddie pocket. I shakily pulled it out, still leaning against Jasper, and saw that it was Bella calling. Before I could open it, Jasper gently took it from my trembling fingers and answered it himself.

"Hello, Bella."

I could hear her surprise through the phone. _"Jazz?! What are you doing there?"_

"I came to Port Angeles myself to get a couple of extra things I needed for the trip," Jasper told her. "I was just about to leave when I ran into Alice. She was in a bit of trouble, so I stepped in to help. It appears that a certain Royce King is still up to his no-good ways."

I couldn't hear Bella's response, but I watched Jasper's face carefully as the conversation continued. "She's fine, just a bit shaken up," Jasper assured his sister. Then, he looked down on me. "You are all right, aren't you?" When I nodded, he went back to his talk with Bella. "She'll be all right. I think I'm going to take her back myself though. I'll see you when you get home with Rose."

He was silent for a moment as he listened to Bella's reply, and he nodded quickly even though she couldn't see him. "I will. They'll be in a spot where you can find them easily. Bye, Bella." He then closed the phone and handed it back to me, and I put it back in my hoodie pocket. "Can you stand?" Jasper asked.

I nodded in silent answer, but when I attempted to get up on my own, I found out that my legs were weaker than I thought and refused to work properly. Jasper noticed this, and he put his arm around my waist as he slowly stood up, gently helping me up with him. He then allowed me to lean against him for support. Before we went anywhere, though, I remembered that I still had Rosalie's car keys. I dug them out of my pants' pocket, and as though he had been expecting it, Jasper took them from me and placed them a little beneath the car by the driver's door, completely out of sight. Then, he began to lead me over to his silver Volvo, which was across the parking lot.

He had me lean on the hood as he opened the passenger door and moved the bags that had been there so I would be able to sit in the front. Then, he grabbed my hand gently and led me around the door, and I was able to thankfully climb into the car on my own. Jasper closed the door once he was sure that I was completely in before going around and climbing in the driver's seat and starting the car.

Before we started driving, he reached forward and turned on the heat since he saw that I was still shivering from the cool breeze. Jasper then turned on the radio to a preset station, and I smiled slightly when I heard a song I recognized. It wasn't the original version of "Sympathy for the Devil," but it was definitely my favorite one, especially since Guns N' Roses did it. I would know that beginning anywhere. "Can you turn it up a little?" I asked quietly. I was relieved to hear that my voice no longer cracked with tears when I spoke.

Jasper smiled a little. "I like your taste in music," he muttered, and he did what I asked without complaint. I hummed along with the words as he put the car in gear and began to drive out of the parking lot.

_"Please allow me to introduce myself_

_I'm a man of wealth and taste._

_I've been around a long, long year_

_Stole a many man's soul and faith…"_

I smiled myself when I heard Jasper singing along quietly, and I turned my head to look over at him as I actually started singing a little as well. I thought that being in the same car as Jasper would be awkward, but it wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it would be. His golden eyes moved to me when he heard the addition of my voice, and his smile broadened a little as we both sang along to the song.

God, why did he have to be so perfect? I couldn't see his face much in the darkness, but his features were dazzling whenever we drove under the light of a street lamp. I knew that no matter what happened in reality, I would always love seeing him in my visions. I was just glad that he wasn't completely ignoring my existence anymore.

But it did seem as though he cared about me. I mean, this was the second time he's saved my skin. That had to mean _something_, didn't it? It was almost like he was becoming my own personal superhero, or something. That thought made me smile.

I leaned back against the cool window, merely watching him now as he continued to sing quietly along with the song. My eyes began to close, the last thing I heard being Jasper's voice as I dozed off…

"_Pleased to meet you_

_Hope you guess my name_

_But what's puzzling you_

_Is the nature of my game…"_

* * *

I opened my eyes and found that I was facing Royce King in the dark parking lot again. What was going on? I was just in Jasper's car, wasn't I? Or had I been dreaming that he had come to my rescue? That could be since it might have just been wishful thinking. I wasn't sure anymore…

Royce leaned forward as if he meant to kiss me or something, and I pushed him away in disgust. There was no way in hell that he was going to be the first guy I kissed! No frickin' way!

I was surprisingly able to get away from him with ease as I began to run away from him and his men. But they were close behind, and I was sure that since my legs were so short, Royce and his guys would have no problem catching up to me.

Suddenly, I screamed and skidded to a stop. Jasper was standing directly in front of me, but he didn't look concerned. Instead, his darker eyes were cruel as they moved to Royce and the others. "Don't worry, Alice," he whispered, his tone reflecting the cold look in his eyes. "They won't bother you again."

Something about his promise terrified me, and I watched with fear as Jasper rushed forward to face the approaching men. Royce was first, and I screamed as I watched Jasper bite into his neck. Royce's cry of agony was bone chilling, and when he was dropped to the ground, his face was so pale that he appeared as if he had been drained of blood. Tears began to form in my eyes as I looked at Jasper's back, my shoulders shaking. This couldn't have been right. He wasn't some kind of monster…

I screamed again as the rest of Royce's men approached him… and as Jasper tore them apart as easily as if they were paper. My heart beating quickly with fear, I began to back quickly away from the scene. I had to get away… This wasn't Jasper… But since I wasn't watching where I was going, I yelped with surprise when I fell over a loose rock, grunting when I landed on my back on the hard concrete. When I slowly opened my eyes again, I screamed when I saw Jasper standing directly over me, a cruel smile playing on his lips and his eyes a deep shade of crimson.

* * *

I gasped as I quickly opened my eyes, trying to drive the terrifying images out of my mind. I hated when my dreams portrayed Jasper that way- like a heartless monster. I much preferred seeing him like a god on Earth.

But the dream still scared me, the feeling of anxiousness rising in my chest causing me to sit up in the bed I was lying in as I wiped the sweat off my face. Looking around, I calmed down slightly when I saw that I was in one of the guest bedrooms in the Cullen house and that it was shortly after midnight. I sighed with relief, but I still decided that some water would be helpful to completely relax me. Not wanting to wake any more of the house's sleeping occupants, I quietly climbed out of bed and ventured into the hallway. I walked almost silently in the direction of where I knew the bathroom was, trying not to alert anyone else that I was awake. I didn't want to be a bother.

Suddenly, a quiet sound reached my ears, causing me to stop. It sounded like it was coming from downstairs in the living room… Who else would be up this late?

I quietly snuck to the stairs, walking down them as noiselessly as I could, and looked into the living room beneath me. I saw with surprise that Jasper was sitting alone on one of the white couches, gently strumming some beautiful chords on his guitar. I had no idea that he could play an instrument so well. As I listened closer, I could make out the song to be "Patience," another one of my favorites. I also had no idea that he was a Guns N' Roses fan. I could live with that…

But then, I blinked with surprise when I heard his soft voice float up to me, and I quickly snuck down the rest of the stairs so that I was sitting on the bottom one to hear him better.

_"Shed a tear 'cause I'm missing you _

_I'm still alright to smile Girl, I think about you every day now _

_Was a time when I wasn't sure _

_But you set my mind at ease _

_There is no doubt you're in my heart now _

_Said, woman, take it slow _

_It'll work itself out fine _

_All we need is just a little patience _

_Said, sugar, make it slow And we'll come together fine…"_

"All we need is just a little patience," I sang quietly with him, not thinking. I then covered my mouth quickly when I realized that I had actually sung aloud. He wasn't supposed to know that I was there!

Jasper immediately stopped playing and looked over in my direction, but when he realized that it was just me, he calmed down slightly. "I… I didn't realize that you were sitting there," he muttered as he set his guitar down on the floor. "I'm sorry if I woke you."

"No, no you didn't wake me," I assured him, standing up and walking over to sit beside him on the couch. At least, his guitar playing didn't. "Jasper, keep playing. That was beautiful."

But Jasper looked hesitant at my request. "I don't really like playing when people are around to hear," he told me quietly. "I only do it when I need to think about something that's on my mind. It's a way to get my thoughts and emotions out."

That was understandable. Everyone needs a good release. "You played in front of me," I reminded him, hopeful that he would pick up his guitar again and continue playing where he left off.

"Yes, but that was when I wasn't aware that you were watching me."

I sighed, curling my legs up beneath my arms and placing my chin on top of my knees. "Oh. I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable," I said. "I've just never heard anyone play like that before. I loved it."

Jasper smiled slightly, his golden eyes settling on something across the room. "That's all right, Alice," he replied. He clearly had no intention of playing again."

"Does… does the song you play reflect what you're feeling?" I asked after a moment of silence passed between us.

After another long minute, he nodded in answer. "Yes."

"So, why were you playing 'Patience?'" I wondered. "That's one of my favorite songs, you know."

I think this was the closest I've seen Jasper to being embarrassed. "I've… just had a lot on my mind lately that I've had to sort out and deal with," he settled on telling me. That was the only answer I got, so I decided not to push him.

Instead, I laughed a little. "You know, before I moved to Forks, my dad tried to teach me how to play the guitar," I muttered. "But I didn't get very far before I quit."

Jasper looked over at me curiously. "How come?" he asked.

I looked back at him, relieved that we were making conversation that wasn't so awkward. "Well, my fingers weren't long enough for starters," I answered. "But then I cut one of them on a string, and I didn't want to touch a guitar again."

To my surprise, Jasper laughed. I frowned slightly. It really hadn't been _that _funny, had it? "You can't let something like that stop you, Alice," he said, and I watched as he picked up his guitar again. "Those are the kind of obstacles you have to overcome. Believe me, I've had my share of cut fingers from guitar strings. Here. Why don't you play me something?" He held out his guitar for me to take.

I stared at him in shock, almost as if he asked me to say the alphabet backwards with one small catch- it had to be in Romanian. "Wh-what?"

"Play me something," Jasper repeated with a small smile.

"But… But I haven't played for years," I swallowed nervous. "I'm not very good…" I had to get out of this!

Jasper's eyes shone. "Nonsense. Playing a simple melody on a guitar isn't something that you can forget very easily, especially if you practiced it enough times," he told me. "Come on, don't be shy. I won't judge you."

I sighed heavily, knowing that I wasn't going to get out of doing this, as I uncurled my legs and slowly took the guitar from him. I held it like my dad had taught me to, but I froze in a panic when I realized that I didn't remember where to place my fingers for the correct starting position.

"Here."

Jasper was suddenly very close to me, which made me blush fiercely. He put his arm around my shoulders to reach my hand as he gently took each finger and stretched them to place them on the right frets- each cold touch of his hand sent an electric current running through my body. "There," he whispered, his cool breath on the back of my neck making me shiver. "Go."

He backed away from me again so that I could play, and I took a deep breath to calm my racing heart before attempting my pathetic version of "Mary Had a Little Lamb." It was horrible- I missed so many notes in that short song. But one guiding touch from Jasper's hand on my fingers allowed me to hit the correct notes when I made a mistake, which was frequently.

"Not bad for not picking it up for a few years," he commented as I handed his guitar back to him, which he thankfully didn't put on the floor. I, for a fact, knew that it had sounded terrible. "All you would need is some practice to get better. I'm a little disheartened that you gave it up."

I smiled as I tried to lighten the moment. "Well, if it makes you feel any better, I attempted to learn the piano from my brother, Edward, after the guitar thing didn't go so well," I replied. "But… I gave that up too… shortly before I moved to Forks…"

Jasper's eyes narrowed as if he was able to sense my change in mood. "Why did you do that?" he asked, concern in his voice.

A thin line of tears formed in my eyes as I thought about the reason. "My… my parents died in a car accident two years ago, which is why I live here with my grandmother," I answered in a whisper, hoping that my tears wouldn't fall this time. I swallowed, hoping that would help keep them back. "After that, my heart wasn't into music anymore, at least when it came to playing it. In fact, my heart wasn't into much of anything… That's why I'm afraid to start a relationship with someone too…"

I blinked in surprise when I felt something cold touch my back, and I saw that Jasper had reached over and was not calmly rubbing it. "I'm sorry about your parents, Alice. I had no idea," he muttered, the sympathy he felt showing through in his golden eyes. "But that _would_ explain a lot of the conflicting emotions I'm getting from you."

"What do you mean?" I looked over at him curiously.

Jasper sighed. "Well, I've always been in tune to the emotions of others, and I can 'read them,' per se," he explained. "Normally, it comes pretty easily. But with you, it's more complicated. You have so many emotions running rampant within you that they often conflict. I can never get a clear reading from you."

"Is that bad?" I felt a little nervous as I waited for his diagnosis.

"I wouldn't say that," Jasper told me, and I sighed with relief. "I would say it's more… _interesting_ than anything. It's a good challenge for me. I haven't encountered anything like you before."

For some strange reason, I smiled at his statement as I wiped my tears away. So, I was interesting to him, huh?

Jasper looked down on me for a long moment before he sighed again. "Do… do you really want me to keep playing?"

His quiet question caught me off guard, but my smile broadened and I nodded enthusiastically. "Yes, please," I told him, sitting back against the pillows on the couch. "Pick up where you left off before I so rudely interrupted you."

"If you wish." Jasper gave me a knowing smile before he situated his fingers on the fret board and began to play again.

_"I sit here on the stairs _

_'Cause I'd rather be alone _

_If I can't have you right now, I'll wait, dear _

_Sometimes, I get so tense _

_But I can't speed up the time _

_But you know, love, there's one more thing to consider _

_Said, woman, take it slow _

_Things will be just fine _

_You and I'll just use a little patience _

_Said, sugar, take the time _

_'Cause the lights are shining bright _

_You and I've got what it takes to make it _

_We won't fake it, oh, never break it _

_'Cause I can't take it…"_

I smiled as I slowly closed my eyes, only able to hear Jasper's beautiful, calming voice as I felt a great sense of peace settle on the living room. I had never realized how some of the words of this song reflected how I felt toward Jasper before…

And part of me secretly longed that when he sang those words, he was singing them to me.

**A/N**: Isn't that sweet? As I said, this is probably one of my favorite chapters in this story, so I hoped you liked it too. A lot of Alice/Jasper interaction in there… So, thanks for reading! Your reviews are much appreciated! Oh, and here's the preview, of course.

**Next Chapter**: _Hectic Morning_

_While we waited, I opened my bag of Pop-tarts and turned to Jasper. After all, every package contained two Pop-tarts. "Would you like one, Jasper?" I offered. I hadn't seen him eat any breakfast that morning. "They're strawberry flavored." _

_"No thank you," Jasper said, not even looking at what I offered him. "I'm not hungry." _

Xxx

_We stopped walking when we stepped onto the sidewalk, and I turned to face him. He turned to look down at me too, and I felt my heart skip a beat when his golden eyes met mine. I know it's cheesy to say, but I literally felt like I was lost in those eyes… _

_But then, my vision blurred and I saw Jasper and I suddenly standing a lot closer than we were just a second ago. We were beneath the shade of a single tree on a hill that overlooked a large, still lake, shimmering in the golden light from the setting sun. Jasper looked upset about something, and I reached forward and placed my hand on his cheek as he looked back at me. Then, he slowly leaned his head down toward me with his eyes closed, and the next moment, his cold lips were gently placed against mine. _

Xxx

_What I heard made me gasp, causing Jasper to look over at me with worry. "Alice?" he asked quietly. _

_The cheerful singing going on around me faded out completely as I heard the eerie, cruel sounding laughter coming from the voice message. My hands began to shake as a man's voice I had never heard before filled my mind._


	8. Chapter 7: Hectic Morning

**Disclaimer**: Nope, the characters still aren't mine because I'm not Stephenie Meyer. However, I can still put them through whatever situations I want, lol. Those said situations are mine!

**A/N**: Hey, guys, I'm back! I was going to update on Thursday, but something extremely exciting came up that actually partly has to do with Jackson Rathbone (Jasper)! But anyway, I'm here to update today, and I'm glad you all enjoyed the last chapter, which as I said before was one of my favorites. This one's pretty good too, I think, so enjoy!

_Chapter 7- Hectic Morning_

I slowly woke up to the feeling of a gentle hand shaking my shoulder. Wearily opening my eyes, I saw that Esme was standing over me. She smiled as my eyes met hers. "Rise and shine," she said sweetly. "You guys have to get over to the school since the buses will be leaving early for the camp."

She walked away as I sluggishly sat up and rubbed my eyes, looking around to get my bearings. When I saw that I was once again in the guest bedroom where I had been the night before, I felt color rise to my cheeks. Had Jasper carried me back up after I dozed off on the couch last night? I highly doubted it, but it never hurt to dream.

Then again, we _were_ the only two up last night…

When I looked at the clock on the wall, I saw with surprise that it was only three in the morning. When Esme said early, she meant _early_. But that would explain why I was so tired…

Not wanting to keep the others waiting, I quickly got out of bed and changed into the other set of clothes I had brought for the sleepover, which consisted of a pair of faded jeans, a dark blue, mid-length shirt in case it got hot on the bus, and my favorite black hoodie. When I moved to get my hairbrush, toothbrush, and the works, I saw that my three bags had already been packed and were sitting neatly side-by-side at the foot of the bed. I didn't want to mess anything up, but fortunately, everything I needed was right on top. So I went to the bathroom to brush my teeth, wash up, and spike my hair like I always did since it was my preferred style. The whole process took about half an hour.

After I put everything back in my bags and carried them down the stairs to the living room, I saw that the rest of the Cullen family was already up and moving around, packing up the four cars in the garage. How could they all be so awake already at this early in the morning? But I didn't have time to dwell on this when everyone suddenly seemed to approach me at once.

"Good morning, Alice. I hope you had a good night's rest." That was Carlisle as he gave me a quick hug before running up the stairs to grab something else he needed before I could thank him for paying for the trip for me.

"Here's a granola bar and a Pop-tart, dear." That was Esme, always the concerned mother, as she handed me the food that she had mentioned. "I know it's not much, but it will hold you over until the bus stops for lunch on the way to the camp."

Then, shortly after I unwrapped my granola bar and took a bite, Bella's cold arms were around me in a quick hug. "Rose, Jazz, and I packed your bags after we got home last night," she told me quickly. "You know, since you were exhausted and had fallen asleep on the way home. I hope you don't mind!"

Before I could tell her that it wasn't a big deal and that I appreciated it, she was replaced by Rosalie. "I'm so sorry about what Royce did to you, Alice," she muttered angrily. "I swear, if I would have been there and Jasper wouldn't have reached you first, I would have torn him limb from limb."

Something in the tone of her voice made me think that she was actually serious, but before I could comment further, she was gone and Jasper was standing in front of me. I felt my breath catch in my chest as I nearly choked on my granola bar.

"Rosalie and Bella have packed their car so full that you have no place to sit, so you're going to school in my car," he explained quietly, bending down and grabbing all three of my bags. "I'll take these for you." Then, he began to walk toward the front door, which was being held open by a wooden wedge.

"Jasper, wait!" I was able to mumble loud enough through a mouth full of granola and chocolate chips as I ran after him. I was tired of not being able to get a word in with anyone. I reached forward and grabbed one of my bags from him because I caught him off guard. Otherwise, I had the feeling that I wouldn't have gotten it away from him. Jasper looked at me curiously but didn't question me, mainly because I was still eating my makeshift breakfast, and we walked down the porch steps together in silence.

When we reached his Volvo and Jasper opened the back door, I smiled when I saw a black guitar case spread out on the back seats among his bags. He put the first of my bags on the floor and then took the third from my hand and set it on the seat next to his. He closed the door again before turning to face me, and he smiled also when he saw my smile and met my gaze. After another moment of silence where we just looked at each other, he led me back into the house.

We saw that Bella and Rosalie were already sitting on one of the couches, and Jasper and I quickly and silently took our places on the other since Carlisle and Esme appeared as though they were going to make an announcement.

"All right, here's how today is going to go," Carlisle said once we were all paying attention. "Once you four leave on the bus, Esme and I will come and bring your cars home before we head out to the camp ourselves."

"You're not traveling with us?" I asked.

Esme shook her head. "No, I'm taking my car and Carlisle's taking his since he's the camp's doctor in case he has to take an emergency trip to the hospital or something," she answered. "But after we bring your cars back here, we'll begin our drive out there. It'll take about a day to get to the camp in Montana, so hopefully, we'll be able to get there about the same time you do."

A _day_?! So, we were going to spend a night on the bus? That should prove to be interesting… I glanced over at Jasper, who smiled slightly. I wondered for a moment what emotions he was getting from me now.

"All right, I think it's about time you guys head out," Carlisle announced, checking his watch. "Drive safely, and we'll see you in Montana!"

Bella, Rosalie, Jasper, and I walked outside together, all talking excitedly about the upcoming trip. Well, almost all of us. Jasper remained silent, smiling as he merely took in our excitement.

"See you at the school, Alice! Jazz!" Bella exclaimed before she climbed into the passenger seat of Rosalie's convertible. Jasper and I climbed into his Volvo after I waved back to her, but he didn't turn the car on yet since Rosalie had to pull out of the driveway first.

While we waited, I opened my bag of Pop-tarts since I had finished my granola bar and turned to Jasper. "Would you like one, Jasper?" I offered. I hadn't seen him eat any breakfast that morning. "They're strawberry flavored."

"No thank you," Jasper said, not even looking at what I offered him. "I'm not hungry." He kept his eyes on Rosalie's car in the rear-view mirror, and when he felt that she was a safe enough distance ahead, he started his car and backed out of the driveway after his sister, beginning the drive toward the school.

Jasper flipped through the radio stations while he drove, and though we found nothing but early morning talk shows, I had to admit that I was impressed. His eyes never left the road once, at least not that I could see. But since there really wasn't any music playing, he left the radio off.

"Oh, I never really got the chance to thank you for playing your guitar for me last night, even though you really weren't comfortable doing so," I suddenly muttered, hoping that I could get him into a conversation. The silence in the car was driving me crazy.

Jasper smiled slightly. "You're welcome, Alice," he replied. "I'm just glad I was able to calm you down enough so that you were able to sleep. You needed the rest." But then, his smile vanished. "I… felt more comfortable playing in front of you than anyone else…" He seemed confused by his own words.

If he was confused, then I most certainly was confused. But, I decided to let it slide. It was early in the morning, after all, and he hadn't gotten any more sleep than I had. "You really love that guitar, don't you?" I asked quietly.

"What makes you say that?" Jasper glanced at me quickly before looking back at the road.

This was going to be hard to explain, so I took a bite of my Pop-tart to think my explanation over. "Well… it's just that whenever you play it, I feel this sense of peace and happiness- almost as if I'm feeling what you are," I muttered. "I know it sounds weird…"

Jasper sighed. "No, not really. It doesn't sound too weird. Believe me, I've heard stranger," he said. "When one is performing their craft, whether it be through music or visual art, the audience always has a sense of the same emotion as the creator."

I nodded. That made sense, but that wasn't exactly what I was getting at. Jasper seemed to realize this, so he continued. "My mother gave me that guitar for my tenth birthday," he told me. "That was the last gift she gave me before… before she died." I gasped quietly. So, Jasper understood how it felt to lose a parent? He was like me in that way… "That would be my only form of comfort whenever I thought about her or when our father got drunk. That happened a lot, and oftentimes when he got drunk, he got violent. I remember how scared Rosalie always got when he would yell at us. She would cry, and it would break my heart.

"But whenever our father got drunk, he never got violent with her, thank God. Just me. I was the one who was always the target because I was the only one who stood up to him, which made him angry. I still have a couple of scars from when he struck me or pushed me down the stairs."

I covered my mouth in horror. I had no idea that happened to him… "Is that why you two were taken away from him and adopted by Carlisle?" I whispered.

Jasper only nodded, and the conversation was dropped.

It was about four in the morning when we reached the school, and the parking lot was already packed with students. No one looked sleepy- everyone was visibly excited. Jasper even seemed to wake up a little as he found a place to park, a smile spreading across his face when he felt the energy.

"Thanks for the ride," I said with a smile of my own.

Jasper turned off the car before he turned to look at me. "You needed to get here, didn't you?" he replied, his golden eyes shining. Then, he stepped out of the car and shut the door.

I sighed. Jasper was a total mystery to me. What was I getting into with this friendship? I stepped out of the car after him with my one still uneaten Pop-tart and met Jasper at the back door of the Volvo. He handed me my three bags before grabbing his own, and his guitar, before shutting the door and locking up the car. Then, we began to walk across the parking lot together.

"If you have the car keys, how will Carlisle and Esme bring the cars home?" I suddenly asked, remembering what they had said that morning.

Jasper merely seemed amused by my concern. "They have an extra copy of the keys to mine and Rose's cars in case of emergencies," he explained casually. "It's a good idea to keep in mind."

We stopped walking when we stepped onto the sidewalk, and I turned to face him. He turned to look down at me too, and I felt my heart skip a beat when his golden eyes met mine. I know it's cheesy to say, but I literally felt like I was lost in those eyes.

But then, my vision blurred, and I saw Jasper and I suddenly standing a lot closer than we were just a second ago. We were beneath the shade of a single tree on a hill that overlooked a large, still lake, shimmering in the golden light from the setting sun. Jasper looked upset about something, and I reached forward and lightly placed my hand on his cheek as he looked back at me. Then, he slowly leaned his head down toward me with his eyes closed as I tilted my face up toward him and closed my eyes, and the next moment, his cold lips were gently placed against mine.

It felt completely natural, but it was over much too fast as if he was only testing the feeling. I placed my forehead against his since he was still bent down while he wrapped his arm around my waist and gently pulled me even closer to him before he kissed me again. This time, it lasted longer and was filled with a little more passion…

"Alice! Alice, are you all right?"

I shook my head and blinked to clear my vision, and I looked up to see that Jasper was looking at me with concern. Quickly scanning the area, I saw that we were still standing on the sidewalk in front of the school and that Jasper was farther back from me than I had just seen. Dang… Oh, well.

"What?"

Jasper sighed. Clearly, I was worrying him. "I asked if you were all right," he repeated. "Your eyes were empty, almost as if you were somewhere else entirely. I couldn't read any emotions from you at all. They left you completely. It was as if you were only an empty shell."

So, when I had visions, I didn't give off any emotions? That was good to know, especially with that last one I just had. I had an idea what kinds of emotions I would have given off during it, and that would have been _very_ awkward…

"I'm fine, Jasper," I assured him. "That happens every once in a while where I just go to my own little world. Nothing to worry about, trust me."

Jasper smiled down at me, but then he suddenly looked at something behind me. "I'll see you later, Alice," he muttered before leaving me and mingling with the other students gathered in front of the school waiting for the buses to come.

Before I could call after him and wonder where he was going, I screamed as a pair of arms grabbed me from behind in a massive bear hug that caused me to drop my bags. "_There_ you are, Al!" a familiar voice said as the person easily lifted me a little and spun me in a circle before releasing me.

"Hey, Em," I replied with a smile as I turned to face my older brother. I also gave a smile to Edward, who was standing beside him. "How did looking at the house go?"

Emmett's broad smile vanished. "Didn't you get our messages last night?"

Crap! I never did get a chance to look at those… "No," I answered. "Well, I mean I got them, I just didn't get a chance to look at them. I accidentally left my cell phone in Rose's car when we went to Port Angeles, and I was so tired afterward that I forgot to check them. Sorry if you guys were worried or something." I thought bringing up the incident last night wouldn't have been the best idea.

"Nah, we weren't overly worried. We figured that you were having a good time," Emmett told me, a new smile now on his face. "But okay, here goes. The good news is that I made a down payment to the house and put my name to it, so it's rightfully mine. It only has two bedrooms, but another bed can be fit in one of them, so two of us will have to share either way. No big deal. The better news is, I don't have to make monthly payments for the house yet since we're not even going to be in town for the next three months. That will start when we get back. The only bad news is, which really isn't that bad, is that Grandma's not happy about it since she doesn't think I can own anything without it being a complete disaster…"

A smile appeared on my own face at the excellent news. "Oh, Em, that's wonderful!" I exclaimed, hugging him tightly. I also hugged Edward in my ecstasy and because I hadn't hugged him yet that morning. "I can't believe we'll be living on our own! I guess I can get rid of your texts and voice message now, huh?"

Edward's eyes narrowed in confusion. "Voice message?" he muttered. "We didn't leave you a voice message."

I looked back at him, also confused. I wasn't imagining it when I looked at my phone last night. I most certainly had a voice message. Huh… I'd have to check that out on the bus.

But then, I smiled again when I remembered the food that I still had. "Oh, does one of you want my second strawberry Pop-tart?" I asked, pulling it out of my hoodie pocket- I was surprised that it wasn't crushed from Emmett's massive bear hug. "Jasper wouldn't take it when we were driving over here."

"Sure, I'll take it, Al," Emmett answered, smiling when I handed it to him. But that was Emmett, the bottomless pit of the family.

Edward, however, looked critical. "Jasper brought you here?"

I sighed and gave him an exasperated look. "Ed, just stop," I said fiercely. "I know you want to watch over me, but you don't have to with Japer. He's a good guy, and we're _just friends_. Besides, he's never hurt me, and he's come to my rescue twice now. That has to say something."

Seeing Edward's eyes flare with shock and Emmett's mouth freeze in a funny position since he was in mid chew, I realized that I had said too much. Crap! I hadn't wanted them to know about the incident with Ron… or Roy… Royce, or whatever his name was… last night.

"Alice, what happened in Port Angeles last night?" Edward asked quietly. How could he always seem to know my thoughts?

Before I could come up with some lame, bull-crap excuse, another hand landed gently on my shoulder. I looked behind me quickly, seeing that Rosalie had appeared literally out of nowhere. "The buses just arrived and are parked across the street," she said, and I noticed that all three coach buses really were there. "I've already put my bags away in the first one, and I'll pack up yours too before it gets too crowded."

"You don't have to, Rosalie," I replied, watching as she bent down and grabbed all three of my bags from where they had fallen on the sidewalk. "At least let me help you."

"That's all right, Alice," Rosalie smiled as she straightened up. "Catch up with your brothers." Then, before I could stop here, she began to walk across the parking lot toward the bus with my bags.

"Well, it looks like the witch _can_ care about someone other than herself!" Emmett called after her. "I didn't think you'd help others unless you benefited from it!"

"Stop, Emmett!" I couldn't get what Jasper had told me about their past out of my mind, and it hurt me when my own brother purposely said something out of spite to Rosalie. "You can't blame her for how she is since you don't know where she's coming from."

Emmett actually looked at me curiously like he wanted to know, so I decided to explain. "Her and Jasper's mother died when they were only ten years old, and their father was an alcoholic. He was violent when he got drunk, which happened frequently, and though he never laid a hand on her, she had to watch Jasper get abused and not be able to do anything to stop it. Not only that, but then she was in what I'm assuming to be a violent relationship with this guy named… Royce, I think, which left her with some physical scars rather than just mental. Can you really blame her, Em?"

To my surprise, Emmett appeared to be thinking this information over as he looked over at Rosalie, watching as she loaded my bags into the coach bus with Jasper and Bella standing beside her. His eyes faltered. "I… No," he muttered in disbelief. "No, I can't. I… I had no idea that… that happened…"

I smiled slightly, almost sadly, but then I blinked as Rosalie waved at me, gesturing for us to join her, Jasper, and Bella. "Come on," I told Emmett and Edward. "Let's get on the bus so we can get some good seats together."

By a stroke of luck, the six of us got seats together in the two back rows of the bus, but by some almost cruel yet wonderful twist of fate, I ended up sitting next to Jasper in the very back. Edward and Emmett sat across the aisle from us while Rosalie and Bella sat in the two seats in front of us.

"Well, I guess we're stuck together now, huh?" Jasper asked teasingly, a small smile on his face.

I smiled back at him, but I still blushed and scrunched down in my seat a little. This was going to be one interesting bus ride…

It was almost five when everything was set to leave after everyone got their luggage packed and got seats on one of the three buses, and we were finally on our way. I sighed with content as I looked out the window, watching as we headed toward the highway. I couldn't wait until we got to Montana.

"You miss the sun," Jasper suddenly murmured from beside me.

I turned to him with a broad smile, seeing that he was looking at me with some amusement but also curiosity. I noticed out of the corner of my eye that Edward was looking at us carefully, but with one glare from me, he looked away. "I do," I confirmed. "I used to live in Phoenix, so it was sunny all of the time. At least it'll be sunny in Montana too."

"You seem to be a person who thrives more in the sunshine," Jasper commented, his smile broadening at my enthusiasm. "It's a shame that you don't get much of it while living in Forks."

"I was thinking of moving back somewhere where there's a lot of sun," I muttered thoughtfully. "After I graduate high school and go to college. Something like that."

"If that's the case, then we won't be seeing much of each other after you graduate high school," Jasper suddenly said in a quiet voice.

"Really? How come?" I asked. I didn't want to leave Jasper so soon. That was only in a couple of years. We were just getting to be good friends.

Jasper smiled, but it was a bittersweet smile since he seemed to sense my change in mood. "I'm not as big of a fan of the sun as you are," he settled on answering. "I like places where there isn't much, so I'll most likely be staying around the Forks area."

I was slightly confused by this. "But you just got back from spending two years in Texas," I said. "That's sunny."

"I know. That doesn't mean that I liked it."

I sighed at his answer, and I could tell that he wanted to drop the topic of his time in Texas. So I settled on just looking out the window to keep myself occupied until we started a different conversation.

As the hours passed by, I started getting hot in my black hoodie, so I pulled it over my head to sit on it or make it into a pillow. But as I pulled my right arm out of the sleeve, I accidentally hit Jasper's shoulder. "Oh, I'm sorry!" But strangely enough, I had to bite my tongue to keep from crying out in pain. His skin felt as hard as a rock…

"It's all right, Alice," Jasper glanced over at me with some concern in his eyes as if he knew how painful that had been for me. Then, his gaze traveled down to my arm, and his eyes narrowed. "You have a bruise."

"Huh?" I glanced down at where his eyes had landed, and I saw the ugly black and blue splotch that had formed near my elbow- a reminder of my encounter with Royce last night. "Oh, yeah. I got that when I was trying to get away from Rose's ex-boyfriend…"

Jasper's eyes took on an angry flare as he delicately touched the bruise with his fingers, slowly wrapping his hand around my arms. I hissed in surprise at how cold it was, but then I placed my other hand on his to stop him as he began to move his hand away. "Please keep it there," I whispered as I met his gaze. It felt really good… almost like an ice pack.

He smiled slightly, almost hesitantly, but he kept his hand over my bruise. We sat that way in silence for a while, simply looking down at my arm. Then, without raising his gaze, Jasper suddenly muttered, "I'm sorry."

I blinked, surprised as I looked back up at him. "Sorry? What for?" I wondered. "You have nothing to be sorry for, Jasper."

Jasper, however, seemed to not even hear me. "Royce hurt you," he said, moving his fingers for a moment to look at my bruise again before wrapping them back around it. "I wasn't there in time…"

"Do you think I blame you for this?" I replied, moving my arm a little to emphasize my point. "Jasper, you saved my life! This was caused by my own clumsiness more than anything. He grabbed my ankle, and I fell. There's no way I blame you for this!"

Still, Jasper didn't seem to believe me, and I sighed with frustration as I wondered what I could do to lighten the mood. Then, a sly smile spread across my face. I quickly reached over with my free arm and ruffled his blond hair, catching him off guard. He looked at me with surprise, and I laughed. Though I didn't have the unique ability of telling other people's emotions like he did, I could see his confusion. Then, my own smile broadened when Jasper also smiled, and he reached over with his other arm and ruffled my hair in return. Soon, it turned into an all-out war between us, and we were both laughing since by the end, we looked as though we had just gotten out of bed.

But as the time continued to pass, I soon saw why it was going to take a day to reach the camp. There was construction lining the highway, and the traffic had basically come to a complete stop. Jasper and I had stopped our war not too long ago, but thankfully, he seemed to be in better spirits since I had convinced him that what had happened to my arm wasn't a big deal. But everyone was still bored due to the stalled traffic, so Emmett led the whole bus in a series of classic road trip songs, such as "99 Bottles of Beer on the Wall" and "I Know a Song that Gets on Everybody's Nerves." This, at least, would distract us for some time.

Then, about an hour and a half later during a butchered round of "Old McDonald," I suddenly remembered that I had a voice message on my phone that wasn't from one of my brothers that I should probably check. I reached into my pocket flipped my phone open after I pulled it out, deleting the two text messages before activating my voice mailbox and bringing the phone to my ear.

What I heard made my gasp, causing Jasper to look over at me with worry. "Alice?" he asked quietly.

The cheerful singing going on around me faded out completely as I heard the eerie, cruel-sounding laughter coming from the voice message. My hands began to shake as a man's voice I had never heard before filled my mind.

_"My, my, Alice. You've grown up so much over the past two years. You sure are turning out to be an interesting young woman. Definitely one of my… better hunts. You're actually making this fun. But don't think that your new blond friend will be enough to protect you forever. Ha. I'll see you in Montana, my dear."_

**A/N**: Cliffie ending, lol. Sorry, I couldn't resist. After that fluffy ending last time, I though it was time for another cliffhanger. Thanks for reading! Your reviews are much appreciated! And, just like always, enjoy the preview!

**Next Chapter**: _Welcome to Camp Lupine_

_But what was even stranger than their lack of eating was what Emmett did while we were eating. He nervously cleared his throat and looked at one of our pale friends. "Um… Rosalie?"_

_I was instantly on edge, as was Edward, as we looked at our older brother and wondered what he was doing. Bella glanced at Jasper as Rosalie raised her gaze to meet the guy's sitting across from her. No one wanted an argument to break out now… "What is it, Emmett?" Her tone was not friendly, despite the smile on her face- it was almost accusing._

Xxx

_I slowly opened my eyes when bright sunlight hit them, and I took a deep breath as I tried to wake myself up. I felt very refreshed- that was one of the best night sleeps I've ever gotten. But as I turned my head to look around me, I gasped with shock or horror, I wasn't sure which._

_I don't know how, but sometime during the night, my head somehow resting up on Jasper's cold, hard shoulder._

Xxx

_I saw one of the boys in the group with shoulder-length black hair smile and wave at us. That must have been Jacob. Hmm… He was kinda' cute. Not quite my type, but still kinda' cute._

Xxx

_Then, a human-shaped shadow fell over me from the window, and I looked behind me to see who it was. I gasped as all of the color left my face. It was a man I didn't recognize with blond hair pulled back in a ponytail with gleaming red eyes that appeared to be… hungry._

Xxx

_I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Jasper wouldn't go back for Bella and Rosalie? What if that guy hurt them? If I had even seen a guy, that is… I wasn't sure anymore. "No! Stop! Let me go!" I cried, stomping on his foot forcefully to try to get him to stop walking. "Jasper, stop!"_

Xxx

_"Get away from her, leech!" _

_I gasped as I heard the fierce tone behind me, and I turned to look over my shoulder as Jasper's head shot up. I instinctively wound my arms around his waist tightly as the air grew tense around me, and his arm that had been around me tightened._


	9. Chapter 8: Welcome to Camp Lupine

**Disclaimer**: Nope, the characters still aren't mine because I'm not Stephenie Meyer.

**A/N**: Hey! Thanks for your reviews, everyone! I appreciate them all, and it's great to see that you're all enjoying this story as much as I am! Just a note about this chapter, I am making Billy Black Jacob's grandfather (for the life of me, I can't remember if he was his father or grandfather in the book, so I'm just going with grandfather because it works out better for this story anyway). So, yeah, I hope no one's bothered by that. But, I mixed up all the characters a lot anyway, so it shouldn't be too big of a deal, lol. Enjoy this chapter!

_Chapter 8- Welcome to Camp Lupine_

"_My, my, Alice. You've grown so much over the past two years. You sure are turning out to be one interesting young woman. Definitely one of my… better hunts. You're actually making this fun. But don't think that your new blond friend will be enough to protect you forever. Ha. I'll see you in Montana, my dear."_ There was another laugh, and then the message ended.

"Alice?" Jasper asked again.

I flipped my cell phone shut, not even bothering to delete the message. I was shaking all over, and I could feel the color leaving my face while a cold sweat took its place. Who the hell would leave a message like that? Of course, it had to be a trick of some sort by someone I knew since the man had even blocked his number and knew about me, but it wasn't funny…

"Alice, what's wrong?" Jasper continued to press. I could hear that he was getting more and more concerned with my lack of answer.

"No… nothing," I muttered, but my voice was weak. Jasper would have to be a complete idiot to not be able to tell that something was wrong. Which he wasn't…

I quickly looked down on my shaking hand, seeing that Jasper had wrapped his cold one around it. "What happened?" he whispered, his golden eyes pleading with me. "What did your voice message say?"

Before I could answer him, loud cheers suddenly erupted from everyone sitting on the bus as Jasper released my hand. I looked out the window and saw that we were moving faster now. We had moved past the construction and were now trying to find a place to stop for dinner. A small smile appeared on my face despite the ominous voice message I had received, and Jasper didn't push the subject further.

We stopped for dinner at a typical fast food place, where I sat with Edward, Emmett, Bella, Rosalie, and Jasper. As usual, the Cullen siblings didn't eat anything, even when I offered them some of my fries. They claimed they didn't like fast food. I never saw them eat _anything _the more I thought about it, but they all appeared to be healthy anyway. It was very strange…

But what was even stranger than their lack of eating was what Emmett did while we were eating. He nervously cleared his throat and looked at one of our pale friends. "Um… Rosalie?"

I was instantly on edge, as was Edward, as we looked at our older brother and wondered what he was doing. Bella glanced at Jasper as Rosalie raised her gaze to meet the guy's sitting across from her. No one wanted an argument to break out now… "What is it, Emmett?" Her tone was not friendly, despite the smile on her face- it was almost accusing.

Emmett sighed, clearly not comfortable in the situation either. "I just wanted to say… I'm sorry," he muttered, giving her a small and awkward, but still sincere, smile. "I'm sorry for all of the bad things I've said about you, and I'm hoping that you can forgive me. And… you know… maybe being friends some day might be cool too. So… what do ya' say?"

Rosalie just looked… shocked. That was the best way to describe her expression. She probably thought that Emmett didn't have a big enough heart- or too large of an ego, either way- to apologize. I exchanged a relieved look with Edward, and we both smiled while Jasper and Bella did the same. Now, we just had to wait for the outcome of Emmett's apology…

"Well, that was… unexpected," Rosalie said, but she smiled a little. "What's with the sudden change of heart?"

"I just… had some time to think things over," Emmett told her, lightly kicking my foot under the table. _Thanks_, Em… "So, friends?" He gave her a hopeful smile.

Rosalie looked at him for a long moment as if considering her answer, and then her smile broadened. "Sure. Friends," she replied. "Just no more bad remarks."

Emmett nodded and reached his arm toward her to shake her hand. After another minute, Rosalie accepted and took his hand in hers. "Deal. That goes both ways."

I smiled mischievously at Jasper and then at Edward and Bella. Needless to say, we were going to make Emmett and Rosalie sit together on the bus for the remainder of the trip.

We went through with our plan, for after Jasper and I sat back in our seats, Bella rushed to sit next to Edward across the aisle from us before Emmett could, and the look on his face when he realized that he had to sit next to Rosalie was hilarious. But he slowly sat down in the seat beside her, laughing a little to try to not make it seem like a big deal. Rosalie just smiled and looked out the window.

Night approached just as we crossed into Montana, and we were instantly hit with more construction. I watched as Mr. Daniels, one of our staff chaperones, went up front to talk to the bus driver.

"The driver's telling him that with the construction, we really won't get there until late tomorrow morning just as Esme said," Jasper muttered, his golden eyes on the two men carefully. "They mentioned stopping at a hotel, but they agreed it would be better to just drive through the night."

I looked at him, surprised. I had been curious about what they were talking about, but there was no way that Jasper could hear them when we were at the very back of the bus… could he? "How can you know that?" I asked. "You can't actually hear them, can you?"

Jasper only smirked back at me. "I have an idea," he told me, but he didn't provide any further answer. I sighed with frustration, going back to looking out the window at the bright orange traffic cones as we passed by them.

About another hour passed before I started getting drowsy. Just getting over being sick, staying up late last night, and getting up early this morning was _not_ a good combination. I looked over at Jasper, seeing that he didn't look tired at all. How was that even possible? He was up last night like I was, probably longer. And I didn't want to sleep and leave him without anyone to talk to.

After another moment, Jasper slowly looked over at me when he felt my eyes on him. "You can sleep without offending me, Alice," he said quietly. "You need it."

I bunched up my hoodie and put it behind my head to form a makeshift pillow just to be more comfortable, but I had no intention of sleeping yet. "I'll be fine for a while yet, Jasper," I told him.

Suddenly, my eyes began to feel heavier as a wave of calm and exhaustion passed through me. I panicked slightly at the unnatural feeling. What was going on? I looked up into Jasper's golden eyes with confusion, but I didn't get any answers since he was simply looking aback at me with an impassive expression on his beautiful face. I couldn't fight the feeling any longer, though, and I immediately fell into a deep sleep.

* * *

I slowly opened my eyes when bright sunlight hit them, and I took a deep breath as I tried to wake myself up. I felt very refreshed- that was one of the best night sleeps I've ever gotten. But as I turned my head to look around me, I gasped with shock or horror, I wasn't sure which.

I don't know how, but sometime during the night, my head somehow ended up resting on Jasper's cold, hard shoulder. Blushing fiercely, I quickly sat up so that my back was against the window, my breathing irregular and my heart racing. I watched as he slowly opened his eyes and looked over at me curiously. "Oh, my God! I'm sorry, Jasper!" Okay, sleeping on Jasper's shoulder is _so_ not appropriate!

But to my surprise, he just laughed a little. "It's all right, Alice," he replied. "I didn't even notice."

Sighing with relief, I slowly moved to sit back down comfortably in the seat. Looking around, I saw that the two of us were the first ones awake except for some kids and teachers sitting in the front of the bus. "You… you really don't care that I… well… slept on your shoulder?" I asked hesitantly.

"No, of course not," Jasper answered with a small smile. "As long as you're comfortable, I don't mind."

A smile appeared on my own face before I looked out the window. "Thanks, Jasper," I muttered. My eyes brightened up considerably when the sunlight hit my face, and I felt a certain sense of peace that I hadn't felt since I lived in Phoenix. It was almost like I was being introduced to a long-lost friend. And I had to admit that Montana was beautiful. Not quite like my hometown of Phoenix, but it was beautiful nonetheless. Jasper only laughed quietly at my enthusiasm, which was a sound that made my smile broaden.

In the next hour that passed, everyone began to wake up, and there was a certain energy that passed through the bus when we learned that we were nearly there. We finished the movie that we had been watching- _Van Helsing_- while I mainly talked to Jasper about random things that came to our minds. He did have some questions about my home in Phoenix, to which I almost got teary-eyed when I talked about my parents and angry when I mentioned my grandmother. When I asked him if he was going to be all right being in a sunny state for a full three months, he grew quiet and kinda' defensive, so I quickly changed the subject to something that was more… well, more lighthearted.

Elephants and pink teacups.

I don't know why I chose that weird, random topic, but at least it got him smiling and talking again. I looked at the two seats ahead of us and saw with surprise that Emmett and Rosalie were in the middle of a friendly conversation about something or other that was making them both laugh. And was it my imagination, or were Edward and Bella sitting closer together as the end of the movie was playing?

Hmm… crushes? It would be interesting to find out how the relationships between my two brothers and two of my best friends played out.

Finally, about twenty short minutes later, we reached the summer camp. A large, wooden sign that read "Welcome to Camp Lupine" in red, cracked letters stood tall over the driveway as we went under it. The bus moved down a long, winding, gravel trail that was lined with dense trees on both sides before the path opened up to a large parking lot. On the vast, grassy lawn sat a large, wooden cabin with a sign in front of it that read "mess hall" before it dipped down slightly and led to a broad, shimmering lake. The entire area was surrounded by woods, and there was a narrow path on the other side of the parking lot, but I couldn't see where it led. I gave an excited smile to Jasper since we were finally here, and he returned it.

We were then allowed off the bus, and I stretched as my friends and brothers gathered around me to grab our luggage. The sun had disappeared behind the clouds, but the air was still mild. I smiled when Jasper pulled my bags out of the bus and handed them to me before grabbing his own. I knew then that the strong feelings of attachment that I felt toward him that my visions gave me were when his eyes were gold…

Once everyone had gotten their bags, the three buses that had made the trip to Montana left us standing in the gravel parking lot, and I saw that the chaperones had gathered in a line in front our massive group. My face lit up when I saw that Carlisle and Esme were among them. Good, they had made it in time…

I watched from where I was squished between Jasper and Edward as a man with graying black hair and darker skin rolled up in a wheelchair to the line of staff and greeted them before facing us. Gathered with him was a group of five tall boys and one girl with the same hair color and skin tone. These must have been the people from the La Push reservation that owned the camp. I then noticed that Carlisle and Esme were slightly moving away from this group, almost as if they were trying to avoid them. I wondered why…

"Welcome to Camp Lupine!" the man in the wheelchair announced cheerfully. "My name is Billy Black, and I am the owner of this wonderful camp. I also speak for my grandson, Jacob, and his friends when I say that we are pleased to have you here for the summer, and that we hope you have a wonderful time during your stay."

I saw one of the boys in the group with shoulder-length black hair smile and wave at us. That must have been Jacob. Hmm… He was kinda' cute. Not quite my type, but still kinda' cute.

"While you're here at Camp Lupine, there are some basic rules that we need you to follow," the man named Billy continued. "Obviously, we do not want you to leave the campsite. We don't want anyone getting hurt or lost. Secondly, do not go into the woods alone, especially at night. This is a true forest reserve, so there are plenty of wild animals around us. Again, we don't want you to get hurt or lost. And of course, for your safety, no drugs, alcohol, or anything, which I'm sure none of you do anyway. And once you're assigned your cabins, you are expected to stay there every night. No, boys, you can't go sleep in the girl cabins or vice versa."

For one amused moment, I wondered if this was what the kids who attended Camp Crystal Lake felt like when they first arrived before all the psycho murderer stuff happened. It was possible…

"And the final rule is, just relax and have fun! There will be organized activities going on throughout the summer, but you certainly don't have to participate if you don't want to. We hope you will, of course, but if you don't just let us know where you are going to be so we don't have to send a search party after you. At the very end, however, there will be a camp kickball game where we would like to have everyone participate, and of course, there will be the dance on the last night that we would love everyone to attend. So, start looking for dates as soon as possible!"

There was an excited murmur moving through the crowd, to which Billy smiled and said, "Just make sure to keep it appropriate."

I looked around at the crowd as some people muttered with fake disappointment, and my gaze stopped when Mike caught my eye. Seeing that he had my attention, he began to mouth me a question, which I finally deciphered to be:

"Will you go to the dance with me?"

I sighed before slowly shaking my head, quickly turning to look away before I could see his downcast expression. Sure, I would have had a date for the dance if I would have said yes, but I would rather go alone than with Mike Newton. And I knew who I wanted to go with, but I also knew that was highly unlikely…

"Now, if you'll all step over to your chaperones, they will give you your cabin assignments," Billy concluded. "There are three to a cabin, no more, no less. You can go there, drop off your things and relax for a little while, and then you'll all report to the mess hall for lunch in half an hour. All right, head on over! Thank you for your attention!"

Before I could even move, I suddenly heard a familiar voice over the rest around me. "All right, Alice, here's your cabin assignment."

I blinked with surprise and turned around, shocked to see that Carlisle was standing right behind me. How had he gotten there so fast? "You're with Rosalie and Bella," he continued casually as he handed me a slip of paper with the cabin number on it and a map to lead me there. "And, Jasper, you'll be with Edward and Emmett."

"Awesome!" Emmett said as Jasper was handed the same papers as me. Judging by his reaction, the two of them must have at least been acquainted and had some things in common. But just as I had expected, Edward didn't seem as thrilled about it.

"I have a feeling you were in charge of our cabin assignments," I muttered, looking at Carlisle with a smile on my face.

Carlisle returned the smile and winked at me before turning his attention to his three adopted children. "Bella, Rose, Jasper. We need to talk for a minute," he told them quietly, and I could see that there was a heavier tone to his voice. "Alice, Edward, Emmett, if you would please head to your cabins. Follow the path at the other end of the parking lot, and it will eventually break into two paths. The left leads to the girl cabins and the right leads to the boys. These three will join you shortly."

I looked back at my three friends and watched as Japer gave me a slightly nod before turning back to Carlisle. He, Rosalie, and Bella had gathered around their father, and Esme quickly joined them. They all had grave expressions on their faces as they spoke in quiet tones, their golden eyes quickly flickering to the five teenagers who had been with Billy and back to Carlisle. They seemed to be wary of them, but from what I could see of the five of them, they seemed nice as they laughed and talked with some of the kids from our school as they waited for their cabin assignments.

I blinked in surprise when one of the boys, Jacob Black, suddenly looked up and met my gaze, giving me a broad smile. I blushed slightly and turned my attention back to my vampire friends, unsure of why he had turned to me to begin with.

Then, I looked up when Edward grabbed my arm, and I allowed him to pull me at a run across the parking lot since Emmett was already almost at the path and we had to catch up to him. The three of us walked quickly down the path once we were together, looking at the beautiful forest around us. For the first time in a long time, I felt free. For three months, I would be away from my grandmother in a beautiful place that was warm and peaceful. And even when we returned to Forks, I would be living with Emmett and Edward, so I would still be free. It was one of the greatest feelings in the world.

We soon reached the fork in the path that Carlisle had told us about, so it was time to part ways with my brothers. "Do you want us to walk you down to your cabin, Al?" Emmett asked, some teasing in his voice.

"No, that's all right, Em," I answered, flushing slightly at his joke. "I'll be fine. It's not that bad of a walk. I'll meet you guys in the mess hall in half an hour, okay?"

"If you say so." Emmett shrugged before he began to walk down the right path toward where the boy cabins were. Edward looked back at me, truly concerned about whether I was going to be all right, and I nodded to show him that I would be. Once both of my brothers were making their way toward their cabin, I turned and started to walk down the other path to where my cabin was. But I didn't get very far before I heard a sudden, loud exclamation of, "Damn it!"

I stopped and turned around, and though they were still out of sight, I knew that it was my oldest brother who had spoken, and I could still hear his dismay as he talked to Edward. "Jasper has our cabin assignment and map! We have to go back for him!"

I couldn't help but laugh as I watched Emmett and Edward run through my line of vision and onto the path that would lead them back to the parking lot. Shaking my head and still smiling, I turned back around and continued my walk to my own cabin. Fortunately, Carlisle had give me the cabin number and map and not Bella or Rosalie.

Soon, cabins began to appear on either side of the path that were set at equal distances apart, and I pulled out my cabin assignment number to see which one would be mine. 207. All right, that was an odd number, so it would be on the right and not too far down…

There it was. It was the fourth cabin on my right, and I put the slip in my pocket as I ran up to the wooden building. I set my three bags down before I reached forward and pushed don on the handle, surprised to find that it was unlocked. The door slowly swung open, and I picked up my bags to carry them inside, but before I could enter, I gasped and looked over my shoulder when a strange feeling came over me. It felt like I was being watched… My eyes quickly scanned the area, but there was no one in sight. I could hear some girls laughing in the distance as they walked toward the cabins, but otherwise, I was alone. I nervously entered the cabin and shut the door behind me, sighing and closing my eyes as I tried to drive the feeling out of my mind. I was only imagining things…

But, that was when I clearly saw for the first time where I would be staying for the next three months. The cabin had wooden walls and a cement floor with a large window on the back wall across from me with a wooden desk beneath it that had an electric clock plugged into the wall sitting on top. On the right wall there was a bunk bed and on the left was a single, but decent-sized, bed, all with plain white sheets. I was immediately attracted to the top bunk on my right, and I hoped that Bella and Rosalie wouldn't mind if I took it. Besides, I was the shortest of my three friends and therefore had the least chance of hitting my head on the ceiling if I sat up. It would be perfect for me. And though there wasn't much in the cabin, I knew that I would feel perfectly comfortable here.

I picked up the bags that I had dropped on the floor as soon as I entered and brought them over to the bunk bed, standing on my toes to set all three of them on the top one. I then sat down on the hard floor and took out my phone, calling my voice mailbox to delete the voice message. There was barely any service because of the woods surrounding me, but it would work for this call. The less I could clearly understand the creepy message the better anyway.

Then, a human-shaped shadow fell over me from the window, and I looked behind me to see who it was. I gasped as all of the color left my face. It was a man I didn't recognize with blond hair pulled back into a ponytail with gleaming red eyes that appeared to be… hungry. A grin spread across his extremely pale face when he saw me looking back at him, and I felt my small phone drop from my hand as I screamed loudly in fear.

Suddenly, the door to the cabin crashed open, and I watched as Rosalie and Bella ran in with their bags. "We were just looking for the cabin when we heard you scream," Bella said, rushing to my side and kneeling down next to me as she put her bags on the bottom bunk. "What happened, Alice?"

I couldn't answer her immediately. My breath was coming too quickly as tears formed in my eyes and threatened to fall. Bella sighed and pulled me close to her, patiently waiting for me to be able to answer. Once I was calmed enough to say something, I pointed across the room with a shaking hand. "There was someone at the window…" I muttered. "A man…"

I gasped in surprise, however, when I looked and saw that he was gone. Had I only been imagining it? Had there really been someone there?

At hearing this, Rosalie threw her bags onto the single bed across from us and ran to the window, searching intently for a sign of anyone that could have been there. "There's no one here, Alice," she said before turning to look at us. "Are you sure that you saw someone there?"

"Yes!" I nodded fervently from Bella's arms. I was sure of it now… Or at least, I thought I was…

"Well, all right. I'm going to take a look to see if there's anyone around," Rosalie announced as she began to walk toward the door of the cabin. "Bella, why don't you take Alice to the mess hall or something? I'll lock up after you."

I barely had time to grab my cell phone before Bella pulled my up to my feet with her and grabbed my wrist. As she pulled me to the door and passed Rosalie, I wanted to stop her from searching in the woods alone for that man, if he had really been there. He seemed so dangerous while Rosalie seemed so… well, not dangerous. But Bella was pulling me along too quickly, and we were out of the cabin and walking down the path toward the one that led down to the parking lot before I could say a word, and Rosalie was out of sight.

"We have to move faster," Bella muttered, almost silently, to herself, and the fact that she had no tone to her voice made me nervous since that was unusual. She normally had a lot of inflection in her voice. But she did quickly her pace, and I stumbled a little as she pulled me along.

"Wh-what's going on?" I asked, hoping that my voice wasn't shaking too badly. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, Alice." Now, her voice was lighter like it usually was. "We have to move faster because… we want to get to the mess hall before the rush does."

I could tell that wasn't the truth, but I decided not to push her as we stepped onto the joined path that would bring us to the parking lot. I could just tell that something was wrong…

"Bella, Alice. What's going on?"

At the sound of the new voice behind us, Bella stopped walking and turned around. I did the same, and my tension lifted when I saw Jasper come from the other path that led to the boy cabins and hurry toward us. "Nothing, Jazz," she told her brother when he stopped in front of us. "Alice just thought that she saw someone outside of the cabin window, and Rose's is investigating. I'm taking her down to the mess hall, or maybe we'll walk around the camp to get a better idea of where everything is."

Some sort of secret signal must have passed between them because Jasper's golden eyes suddenly flared as he glanced quickly at the trees around us as if he was looking for something. "I'll take Alice from here," he said, extending his hand out toward me. "Bella, you help Rosalie in her search."

No! Not Bella too! I tried to protest as Bella nodded, but my voice refused to work, and I suddenly found myself at Jasper's side, trapped there by his strong arm. "Be careful, Bells," he muttered before he began to walk toward the parking lot, pulling me along with him.

Under any other circumstance, I would have loved to be this close to Jasper. But not now. Now, I wanted to stop Bella from going back to our cabin to see if there really had been a guy at the window. I wanted answers. I tried to look over my shoulder back at my best friend, but Jasper's hold on me wouldn't allow me to.

"Please, let me go," I begged as I was led along, trying to push myself away from him without success.

"I know you're shaken up, Alice, but believe me when I saw that nothing is wrong," Jasper said, but his pace was a little too quick for his words to be true.

"We have to go back for them!" I continued to try to escape as I spoke, tears of frustration burning in my eyes when his arm didn't even budge an inch. "They're your sisters! Aren't you even concerned about them at all! That man had the presence of an animal, Jasper! A monster!"

Jasper sighed, and I knew this was hard on him too. "Alice, please don't do this. Just believe me now," he pleaded, his voice and expression strained. "Nothing will happen to them. It's unlikely that someone was even at your cabin."

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Jasper wouldn't go back for Bella and Rosalie? What if that guy hurt them? If I had even seen a guy, that is… I wasn't sure anymore. "No! Stop! Let me go!" I cried, stomping on his foot forcefully to try to get him to stop walking. "Jasper, stop!"

Surprisingly, Jasper did stop as he turned to face me, but he still didn't release his iron hold on me. Apparently, my feeble attack had no effect on him. In fact, due to my throbbing foot, I think I was affected by it more than he was. Had he even felt it? "Alice, please calm down and listen to me," he muttered, using his cold thumb to wipe a stray tear that had fallen from my eye. "No one is in danger here. Not Rosalie, not Bella… not you. If there really was someone at the cabin window, he will be found and dealt with, and if there was a slim chance that my sisters were in danger, of course I would go back for them. But believe me now when I saw that everyone is safe. Nothing will happen to you."

As I looked up at him, staring into his golden eyes, my fighting spirit left me and was replaced with a strange feeling of calm. For the first time since Jasper had joined Bella and I, and she left us, I believed him. I knew that what he said was true. Taking a deep breath, I slowly leaned forward and laid my head on his chest, feeling all of the tension leave me as he ran a hand delicately through my hair.

"Get away from her, leech!"

I gasped as I heard the fierce tone behind me, and I turned to look over my shoulder as Jasper's head shot up. I instinctively wound my arms around his waist tightly as the air grew tense around me, and his arm that had been around me tightened.

Walking toward us was one of the darker-skinned boys that had greeted us when we arrived at the camp, and there was an angry expression on his face as he glared at my blond-haired companion. As he drew nearer, I scrunched closer to Jasper when I recognized him to be Jacob Black.

**A/N**: See, there's a nice long chapter for you! I think this might be the last chance I'll get to update for a little while, so I thought I'd do it tonight. I hope you liked it! Your reviews are much appreciated. Oh, and the elephants and pink teacups thing was a joke from my newspaper staff I thought would be great to add in, lol. And, as always, here's the preview!

**Next Chapter**: _"Love is a Many Splendid Thing"_

_But Jasper completely ignored me. His intense eyes were only on Jacob, who laughed at his statement._

_"To me, you're all the same," he told my friend. "You're all dangerous. You know that just by being around her, you are endangering her, don't you?"_

Xxx

_"Don't you ever eat?" I asked as I stopped to grab napkins and a fork before beginning my search to find a table to sit at._

_Jasper grinned at me as he laughed a little. "I do, just never when you do," he answered as I began to look for people that I knew well to sit with. "I have a… strange eating schedule."_

"_Yeah, I've noticed."_

Xxx

_"He's a pretty nice guy once you get to know him, huh?" I asked from where I sat cross-legged on the top bunk bed, reaching into my bag to pull out some more things._

_Rosalie turned around to look up at me. "What are you getting at?" she snapped._

_I grinned. "Oh, nothing," I replied allusively as I pulled out two stuffed animals. "No need to get so defensive, Rose…"_

"_Alice, I swear, if you're implying that I've fallen for your idiot brother-!"_

_I laughed, cutting her off. "Hey. You said it, not me."_

Xxx

_"I don't know what's happening to me, Al…"_

_I smiled, knowing that the feelings I had about my brother were confirmed. I just hoped Rosalie felt the same way about him… "It sounds to me like you're in love with her, Em," I told him._


	10. Chapter 9: Love is a Many Splendid Thing

**Disclaimer**: Nope, not mine. I'm not Stephenie Meyer.

**A/N (please read- important!)**: Hey, guys! Thank you for all the reviews! I appreciate them all! It's also great to see some new pen names! Um, all right, before we move on, there are a couple of things I'll clarify. First off, if any of you caught the word "vampire" in the last chapter, that was a typo. I only have a limited amount of time to type these chapters up and post them since I have to use the library Internet, so there will be typos. "Vampire" hasn't even crossed Alice's mind… at least, not yet. Second, the sun issue. Well, in the last chapter (and this one) it's a cloudy day, which is fortunate for our fave vamps. But on days when it is sunny, they are in the forest so there's gonna' be a lot of shadows. That will come into play a lot in future chapters. And will Alice pull a Bella and love both Jasper and Jacob? Um, not in this one at least. That will be more prominent in the sequel. But, I can guarantee you that it won't be an extreme love triangle like in Bella's case. That really annoyed me, so I'm not doing it. And finally, the whole wolf/vampire treaty thing. It won't come into play much in this story at least territory wise (that will be in the sequel also), but there is still an agreement that is between them that will actually be touched on in this chapter. So, on that note, enjoy the next chapter! I think you'll really like it. There's a lot of humorous things in here after the first section. Thanks, everyone!

_Chapter 9- "Love is a Many Splendid Thing"_

My mind busily tried to register reasons why Jacob Black, the grandson of the man who ran Camp Lupine, would be so angry to see Jasper and I together. I couldn't recall any rules banning PDA, but I also knew that we weren't exactly showing any "public displays of affection." I mean, friends hugged friends all the time, right? This wasn't anything out of the ordinary. And we weren't even dating, so that couldn't be the reason.

We were also in a territory where both boys and girls could be, not in our own designated areas. So, that couldn't be it…

Okay, I give up. I can't think of any reason why I can't be standing in the middle of this path hugging Jasper. I mean, I had recently been freaked out, and he had been kind enough to calm me down. I wasn't doing anything wrong- it was a perfectly normal response. But as far as I could tell, this kid's anger wasn't directed toward me…

"I _said_ get away from her, Jasper," Jacob repeated fiercely.

After a tense, silent minute, Jasper's arm began to unwind from around me. I gasped, fighting the urge to grab it since I didn't want him to let me go. He didn't have to listen to Jacob…

Fortunately for me, that wasn't exactly the case. Though he did release me, Jasper then laid his cold hand gently on my neck, his thumb resting on a tender spot just beneath my chin. My heart began to quicken at his touch, and I could feel my pulse beating sturdily against his thumb. I watched Jasper's expression carefully, wondering what he was doing, watching as his golden eyes seemed to flicker with life when he felt my heartbeat and an emotion flashed across his face that was too quick for me to read. But then, I watched as he suddenly held his breath, almost seeming to be biting his bottom lip as the sudden flare in his eyes dimmed once more. Then, he lowered his hand before he turned to face Jacob.

What just happened?

"There. As you can see, no harm done," he muttered, and I could hear his tone was angry, almost like a warning. "I wasn't intending to hurt her, Jacob."

"I'm sure you use that excuse a lot. All of you leeches," Jacob replied in a sneering way. "If you weren't going to hurt her, then why was she screaming at you to let her go?"

Okay, what the hell was going on? He was _so_ getting the wrong idea here… _Leech_? What kind of name was _that_? And why was Jacob directing it toward Jasper?

"Jacob, I know you don't like us being here, but you know that my family is different," Jasper continued as calmly as he could. "The agreement between us goes far back, and Carlisle has kept it since it was made. We won't be the ones to break it."

"Jasper, what's going on?" I asked quietly, very confused now. "What agreement?"

But Jasper completely ignored me. His intense eyes were only on Jacob, who laughed at his statement.

"To me, you're all the same," he told my friend. "You're all dangerous. You know that just by being around her, you are endangering her, don't you?"

I looked up at Jasper to see what he would say, but I gasped in surprise when I saw his eyes. They were filled with defeat and knowing, almost as if what Jacob had said was true. He didn't meet my gaze though I tried to meet his, and I watched with disappointment as he took a step away from me. I turned and glared at Jacob, the one who had hurt Jasper.

"You know it's true," Jacob said, his eyes still on Jasper. "So, I think it would be best if you and the rest of your family stayed away from her." Then, he turned to me, his anger being replaced by a kind smile. "Sorry you had to hear all that. My name's Jacob. You're Alice, right? I remember your name and face from our files. Why don't you come with me, and we can go have lunch in the mess hall or something?"

He took a step toward me, and I backed away, reaching out and grabbing Jasper's arm tightly. I saw him look at me with surprise out of the corner of my eye. "No! I don't want to go with you," I snapped. "Not after you insulted my friend like that!"

Jacob looked at me with surprise before he looked back at Jasper. "She doesn't know, does she?"

I looked up at Jasper with confusion, but he moved his gaze away from me and didn't answer. I then turned back to Jacob and saw that he was already looking back at me. What was the expression on his face? Fear? Anxiousness? "You… you may be making a mistake," he muttered, his voice strained. "Just promise me that you'll be careful, all right, Alice?"

There was something in his tone and expression that reminded me of Edward, and my anger slowly edged away. "I promise." What else _could_ I say?

But at least Jacob seemed slightly reassured by my simple statement. "Thank you," he said. "I guess I'll see you around then." But his eyes narrowed when they landed on Jasper again. "I swear, if you even come _close_ to stepping out of line…" It was a statement that made me angry.

"I won't. You don't need to worry."

Jacob slowly nodded before he sighed, turning and walking down the path toward the boys' cabins. Once he was out of sight, I felt Jasper relax slightly.

"He's right," he suddenly muttered, his voice almost a whisper. "You may be making a mistake by being close to me."

I looked up at him with fear and tightened my hands around his arm. I couldn't leave him now. Not after we had just become such good friends… "Jasper, you don't have to listen to him…"

"No, he was right about a lot of things," Jasper interrupted me, his voice a little louder, firmer, this time. "Just being around me is very dangerous for you. You have no idea how dangerous I can truly be."

After a moment of silence between us, I let go of his arm and stood in front of him, studying his defeated expression before wrapping my arms around his waist in a comforting hug, as a friend would do. He tensed at my closeness. "I may not know what you're talking about, and I know you don't want to tell me, but I don't believe that," I whispered, laying my head on his chest. "No matter what he says, Jasper, you're still a good friend to me."

I could feel Jasper's eyes on me with shock, and then, his body slowly began to loosen up. He slowly, almost hesitantly, wrapped his arms around me, holding me in place. "Thank you, Alice."

"Of course." I smiled as I looked up at him. "One thing I'm confused about though. What did you mean when you were talking about an agreement?"

Jasper's gaze faltered as he looked back down on me. "Nothing really," he said. "It's just that Jacob's family has never gotten along well with mine. It's sort of a… rivalry thing. It's a rivalry that goes back for centuries."

"And the name calling? I mean the _leech_ thing."

"All part of the rivalry. It's just a strange name that he calls my family, that his ancestors called Carlisle's."

Jasper wasn't giving me very good answers, but I could see that he wanted to avoid the topic, so I decided to drop it… for now. "What do you say we go the mess hall to get some lunch?" I suggested in hopes the tension from the confrontation with Jacob would lift as I pulled away from him. "Food always makes everything better!"

To my surprise, Jasper smiled and laughed a little. "Sure, why not," he replied, ruffling my hair in response. "Lead the way, Alice."

* * *

I was determined to find out the secret behind the Cullen family. After I heard the heated conversation between Jasper and Jacob, I knew that something was definitely up with the people who I considered myself close to. Not that that was a bad thing or anything, but it was something that I was going to find out no matter what it took me. Jasper, Bella, and Rosalie never gave me any straight answers, so it was something that I was going to have to find out on my own.

I moved through the line in the mess hall with Jasper beside me to get my lunch- which consisted of a slice of cheese pizza, a salad with ranch dressing, orange juice, and chocolate milk- but I was concerned to see that my companion hadn't grabbed anything. "Don't you ever eat?" I asked as I stopped to grab napkins and a plastic fork before beginning my search to find a table to sit at.

Jasper grinned at me as he laughed a little. "I do, just never when you do," he answered as I began to look for people that I knew well to sit with. "I have a… strange eating schedule."

"Yeah, I've noticed." I smiled when I saw the back of Emmett's head, and I began walking in his direction. My smile broadened when I saw that Rosalie was sitting across from him with Bella next to her. Edward, of course, was on Bella's other side. But the important thing was that they were okay!

"See? What did I tell you?" Jasper whispered to me as I sat down beside Emmett, and he sat down on my other side.

"Hey, Alice!" Bella said cheerfully, giving me a warm smile. "It's okay, we didn't see anyone around the cabin. So, we're clear."

I returned the smile while Emmett and Edward looked at me with confusion. "Thanks, guys."

Then, I picked up my pizza, but before I could begin to eat it, a couple of guys came up behind where Rosalie was sitting with stupid grins on their faces. This should be very interesting…

"Hey, hot stuff!" one of the guys said, placing their hand on Rosalie's shoulder. "How about hanging out with us sometime? I'll take you the dance on the last night."

Rosalie rolled her eyes in annoyance as she pulled her shoulder roughly out from under his hand and ignored them, but they still didn't seem to get the message. I opened my mouth to say something to these oblivious guys, but someone beat me to the punch… and that was almost literally.

"Hey, back off!" Emmett snapped, rolling up his already short sleeves to reveal his muscled arms. "She doesn't want you. You're not good enough for her. Now get the hell out of here before I teach you a lesson in manners you won't forget!"

I seriously thought that these guys were going to faint when they saw how angry my brother got. They stumbled back from Rosalie before running as far away from Emmett as they could get, not looking back. Bella turned back around to look at Edward, smirking as he did also. But I was very surprised at how protective of Rosalie Emmett suddenly was.

And I wasn't the only one.

"Wow, Emmett. That was…" Rosalie began with a smile and a slight laugh, giving up on trying to find the word she was looking for to describe how she felt and just settled on, "Thank you."

Emmett smiled in return as he met her gaze. "You're welcome, Rose," he replied gently. "You deserve better than creeps like them… and someone who could treat you better and give you more than even someone like I could."

Rosalie looked back at Emmett with an unreadable expression on her face. She appeared as though she was going to say something, but she sighed and dropped her gaze, looking down at her folded hands resting on top of the table.

I grinned broadly as I looked over at Jasper, but it vanished when I saw his disgusted expression. "What's wrong?" I asked with concern.

"You wouldn't believe the emotions I got off of those guys when they were talking about Rose," he answered in a mutter, running his hand over his face. "That's something I never want to feel relating to my sister again."

Oh, that's right. He had that ability… "I'm sorry," I replied, placing my hand on his shoulder for a minute. That was all I could really do since I couldn't imagine how disturbing that must have been for him. "Would you like some of my salad or something?" I wasn't sure how, but I was sure that some food could help in this situation.

But Jasper shook his head, just like I had expected. "No thanks, Alice," he said.

However, I wasn't going to give up this time. "At least have my orange juice," I told him, picking up the small box and holding it in front of his face.

Jasper sighed and looked over at me. "You're not going to let me get out of this, are you?"

I shook my head. "Nope."

After another long, drawn-out minute, Jasper sighed again and took the box from my hand. "Fine," he muttered, but he didn't seem too thrilled about it.

I watched him as he slowly opened it and took a quick but small sip, and a smile spread across my face when I saw his face contort as if he had something completely disgusting. "What, you don't like orange juice?" I asked teasingly.

Jasper opened his eyes as he met my gaze. "It's… not my favorite," he answered, but he took another, longer sip anyway- probably because I was making him. "That's putting it lightly…"

"You don't have to finish it if you really don't like it, Jasper," I said with a small laugh, trying to imagine the suffering he was going through for me.

He seemed to sigh with relief as he set the box down, glaring at the offending beverage as if it was poison. I shook my head and laughed, picking the box up and giving it a little shake. Judging by the sound, Jasper had drunk about half of it. "Good. I'm proud of you!" I smiled. "Would chocolate milk be better?" When Jasper shook his head in silent answer, I laughed again. "All right, suit yourself then."

"How was the orange juice, Jazz?" Bella asked with a smile of her own as though it was some private joke. Jasper made a face at her, which was the only answer she got.

"Go easy on him, Al," Emmett laughed. "You don't want to kill the poor guy."

"Well, that warning came a little too late, Emmett," Jasper muttered in a disgruntled way, which made my brother's smile broaden.

I was able to finish my pizza without any more interruptions, but when I finally moved on to my salad, five more kids approached our table. The small group consisted of Mike, Jessica, Tyler, and two of my other friends from school, Angela and Eric. They were all grinning broadly.

"Hey, you guys are going to the campfire tonight, right?" Mike asked with excitement, though he seemed to be ignoring Jasper, Bella, and Rosalie.

"Campfire?" I said. "There's a campfire tonight?" My eyes quickly flickered down to my hand, which was resting on my knee, when I felt something cold on it. I saw with surprise that Jasper's hand had wrapped around mine, and he was looking at Mike with what almost looked like warning in his eyes.

"Yeah," Angela continued. "On the first night of the camp, the teens from the La Push Reservation that help run it hold a campfire down by the lake. It starts at about five, we grill for dinner, and we stay until about eleven-thirty."

"That sounds _awesome_!" Emmett said enthusiastically.

"It is a lot of fun," Eric confirmed. "They always have activities, like volleyball, swimming, scary stories, s'mores… the whole shebang."

Scary stories? I tensed a little at the mention of scary stories. Those never settled too well with me… I was grateful when Jasper's hand tightened around mine.

"Yeah, but make sure that you keep your swimsuits on under your clothes or something," Jessica told us. "Though it ends at eleven-thirty, most of us go back for a swim around midnight."

Edward raised his eyebrow. "Midnight? Don't you get caught or get in trouble?"

Jessica shook her head. "No," she answered. "Remember that a lot of people running the camp are teenagers like us. I think even Jacob, Quil, and Embry have joined us before. As long as Billy or any of our chaperones don't find out, we're good."

"So, are you guys coming or what?" Mike looked really anxious to know.

I exchanged looks with everyone at my table, looking at Jasper last. "Yeah. We'll be there," I told him while the rest of the people at my table nodded in agreement. "For the midnight swim too. That sounds fun."

"All right! Awesome!" Mike seemed thrilled. "See you guys later!" Then, he and the rest of his group went to talk to other tables about the campfire.

"They're gone," I told Jasper quietly. "You can let go of my hand now if you want."

Jasper didn't seem to hear me at first as he continued to keep his intense eyes on Mike, but then he slowly released my hand. "The emotions I was feeling when he looked at you… I didn't feel comfortable with them," he muttered. "They were very strong."

"Well, he has had a crush on me for the past two years," I reminded him.

"It's still there. Just… more."

I rolled my eyes. "Figures. He's already asked me to the dance on the last night of the camp, but I told him no."

Jasper looked over at me, a small smile gracing his lips. "So, I take it that you're picky when it comes to choosing the right person for you," he teased.

A smile appeared on my face also as I looked back at him. "No, not really," I replied. "Just no golden retrievers!"

* * *

The rest of lunch passed by quickly without any incidents. Rosalie, Bella, and I were soon setting up our beds and unpacking some of our things in our cabin, which was when I brought up the topic of Emmett.

"What about him?" Rosalie said as she finished putting her couple of pillows on the single bed.

"He's a pretty nice guy when you get to know him, huh?" I asked from where I sat cross-legged on the top bunk bed, reaching into one of my bags to pull out some more things.

Rosalie turned around to look up at me. "What are you getting at?" she snapped.

I grinned. "Oh, nothing," I replied allusively as I pulled out two stuffed animals. "No need to get so defensive, Rose."

"Alice, I swear, if you're implying that I've fallen for your idiot brother-!"

I laughed, cutting her off. "Hey. You said it, not me."

Rosalie turned away from me angrily as Bella laughed a little from beneath me, and I wish I could have seen her face because I swear she was blushing. I then looked down at the two stuffed animals that I brought with me, my smile bittersweet since they were gifts I had gotten from my parents when I was a baby. The one in my left hand was a black bat, which was my favorite in my stuffed animal collection since it was the first one I had ever gotten. The one in my right was a brown wolf. It wasn't my favorite, but it was definitely a close second. But, I was very glad that I had brought both of them on the trip because I would have felt very strange, almost empty, if I had left one of them behind. I wouldn't feel complete without either one of them…

"All right. I'm done," Bella announced as she climbed up onto the top bunk to sit next to me. She had to lean back a little so she wouldn't hit her head on the ceiling since she was a bit taller than I was. "How about you?"

"Yeah, pretty much," I told her as I set my stuffed animals near my pillow. "I think for everything else I can just take it out as I need it." I placed my bag in the corner of the bed with the other two so it would be out of the way before I looked down at our other roommate. "How about you, Rose? Are you done unpacking?"

Rosalie sighed and turned to look at me with irritation, her arms crossed in front of her. "Yes," she muttered with no feeling, her eyes still sending daggers in my direction. "I'm finished."

"Geeze, I was just joking around, Rose," I said, jumping down from the bed with Bella beside me. "No need to be so angry. I wasn't implying anything, I swear."

She looked at me for a long moment, but then she smiled slightly as she uncrossed her arms and placed her hands on her hips. "All right, Alice. I give," she replied. "But just for your own knowledge, I have _not_ fallen for your idiot brother."

* * *

"I want to do it, Al, but I don't know how. You have to help me."

I looked over at Emmett with confusion. He, Edward, and I were sitting at the edge of the lake where the campfire was going to be held in a little less than an hour, the sun still taking refuge behind the swirling clouds. Rosalie and Bella had walked with me to the lake, but once there, they immediately left, saying that they had to meet up with Jasper to go speak with Carlisle. They said that they would be returning for the start of the campfire.

"What do you want to do that you need my help with?" I asked.

Emmett's face was strained as he thought about what he was going to say next. "I… I want to ask Rosalie to go to the dance with me at the end of the summer," he finally answered in an uncertain mutter. "It's so strange. I used to think she was a total bitch, but now I see she isn't. I feel really happy when I'm with her. And when those guys talked to her at lunch like that, I felt… angry and protective. I don't know what's happening to me, Al…"

I smiled, knowing that the feelings I had about my oldest brother were confirmed. I just hoped Rosalie felt the same way about him… "It sounds to me like you love her, Em," I told him.

He looked at me as though I had just told him the world was going to end in three seconds. "_Me_ in love with _Rosalie_? No…"

Well, the world didn't end…

Edward raised his eyebrow. "I think Alice may be right, Emmett," he said, giving me a knowing wink. "That's what it sounds like."

Emmett glared at him. "All right, Mr. I'm-a-Relationship-Expert," he sneered. "I suppose it's just like you and Bell, huh?"

I laughed as color quickly rushed to Edward's face, his gaze traveling over to the still lake. "Not exactly, Emmett. For starters, I don't deny how I feel about her," he murmured. "In fact, I've even asked her to go to that dance with me already."

At his statement, I straightened up with interest. Wow, it was still only the first day of camp. That was impressive. He must have asked her before Jasper and I arrived at the mess hall for lunch. "Really?" I asked. "What did she say?"

"She said that she would love to go to the dance with me."

I smiled broadly. I was so thrilled that Bella had agreed to go with Edward. I hoped that by the end of the summer, they would actually be together since they made such a cute couple.

As for Emmett…

"You'll just have to ask her and hope she says yes, Em," I told my oldest brother. "Just make sure it's at the right time, though. You don't want to rush anything."

Emmett, however, shrugged at my advice. "I'm not going to dwell on it by planning anything ahead," he replied off-handedly. "I'll just go with the flow and hope for the best."

I laughed a little at my brother's laid-back attitude, but then I stiffened as I gasped as my sight faded. I knew that I was going to have another vision…

"Alice?"

But what I saw this time made me scream in terror.

**A/N**: Sorry, another cliffie, lol. I couldn't help it. I hope you enjoyed this chapter! The next one won't be quite as lighthearted. But, here's the preview to show that. Thanks for reading, guys! Your reviews are much appreciated. Enjoy the preview!

**Next Chapter**: _It's My Life_

Then, my eyes widened when I saw Jasper crash through the trees a long distance behind this animal of a man, running toward us at an inhuman speed. But he was too late when this _creature_ that had killed my brothers lunged at me, snarling viciously. I was barely able to scream, "Jasper, help me!" before his teeth clamped tightly onto my neck.

Xxx

_"Edward and Emmett are going to die… I saw it, Jasper, I saw it…"_

_Jasper's eyes narrowed as he placed his arm around me lightly. Clearly, that hadn't been what he had been expecting to hear. "Hold on," he muttered. "What do you mean you _saw_ it?"_

Xxx

_Jacob raised his head and slowly looked into my face with confusion, and my anger quickly faded away. "You don't know, do you?" he asked quietly in nearly a whisper. "He still didn't tell you…"_

Xxx

"_Come on, lighten up, Ed," Emmett said with frustration as he grabbed a water bottle out of the cooler. "Jasper's a good guy. We sometimes talked at school during that last week when he was there. I don't see anything wrong with it if Alice wants to go to the dance with him or something." How did they know about that? Was I _really_ that obvious? "Besides, you'll have to get used to him since we're sharing a cabin with him for the next three months."_

"_There's just something not right about him, something that I don't trust," Edward muttered thoughtfully as he took the water bottle Emmett offered him. "I think someone else would be better for her, that's all."_


	11. Chapter 10: It's My Life

**Disclaimer**: Ah, nope. My first name may start with an "S," but it's certainly not Stephenie, so I'm afraid I don't own her characters.

**A/N**: Hey, I'm back with another update! Sorry for the cliffie last time. But thank you so much, guys! Wow, I got a lot of reviews! I'm glad you're all liking it so much! I'll keep it up if you guys will! Um, let's see… This might be the last time I'll get to update for a little while, so just be forewarned. Oh, **warning**. The first part of this chapter's kinda violent, just to let you know, and it contains death… Anyway, now since that warning's out of the way, enjoy the chapter!

_Chapter 10- It's My Life_

"Alice!"

My brothers' shouts of worry completely faded as the scene played out in my mind.

_I was standing by the edge of the lake with Edward and Emmett like I had been, except now it was dark and the three of us were completely alone._

_I heard a nearly silent footstep behind me, and I quickly whirled around. My face completely drained of color when I saw a man with blond hair tied back in a ponytail walking toward us, his red eyes glowing maliciously. I took an automatic step backward when I realized that this was the same man I thought I had seen at our cabin…_

_"Hello, Alice," he said in a smooth, sneering tone as a grin appeared on his pale face. "We finally meet…"_

_My eyes widened with surprise when Edward's arms suddenly wrapped around me protectively as he pulled me close and Emmett stepped in front of us with an angry glint to his eyes. "What do you want with our sister?" he demanded._

_The man merely laughed as he came to a stop a short distance ahead of us. "I don't know why you bother wasting your time," he muttered. "You won't be able to defend her."_

_Emmett growled angrily as he ran toward the man with his fist raised, ready to punch him. But from where I stood in Edward's secure arms, I suddenly had a terrible feeling in my heart as something about the strange man's presence told me that my oldest brother's strength would do no good against him…_

_"Emmett, stop!" I cried, struggling to fight out of Edward's hold, but to no avail. "_Emmett_!"_

_But I was too late._

_The man easily grabbed Emmett's wrist when he threw the punch. His eyes were gleaming spitefully as he looked into my brother's shocked expression, and then he yanked on his arm forcefully. I winced when I could hear from the loud crack and Emmett's cry of pain that he had pulled his arm clean out its socket. I thought I was going to be sick…_

_Then, this… _monster_ lashed his foot out into Emmett's back, and I could hear from another long, loud series of cracks that his spine had snapped. He then dropped my brother's broken, lifeless body to the ground before walking toward us again._

_Edward's arms tightened around me as I sobbed and clung to him tightly, feeling incredibly weak. I couldn't believe that Emmett was actually… _dead_. I wouldn't let the same thing happen to Edward too…_

_When the man reached us, Edward tensed around me protectively, but he simply reached forward and grabbed his shoulder, pulling my brother from me as easily as if he was a rag doll even though I tried to hold onto him. I watched with terror as the man leaned forward and bit Edward's neck, his scream echoing around the area as I sank weakly to my knees and cried. I slowly looked up and watched as the man dropped my second brother to the ground as well, and I could see by his pale face that he had been completely drained of blood. I trembled as he towered over me, cowering at his feet. Emmett and Edward had both died to save me, but I knew that I was his main target…_

_Then, my eyes widened when I saw Jasper crash through the trees a long distance behind this animal of a man, running toward us at an inhuman speed. But he was too late when the _creature_ that had killed my brothers lunged at me, snarling viciously. I was barely able to scream, "Jasper, help me!" before his teeth clamped tightly onto my neck._

* * *

"Jasper, help me!"

"Alice, it's all right. Calm down…"

"Jasper!" My eyes snapped open in a panic as I quickly looked around the area. It was still light out- as light as it could be on a cloudy day, that is- and I was sitting at the edge of the lake with Edward and Emmett on either side of me, who both looked worried and confused. Edward's hands were wrapped tightly around my arms as he tried to calm me down.

"It's all right, Al," Emmett told me unsurely, rubbing my back a little. "Nothing's happening…"

But I shook my head in protest as tears quickly filled my eyes again and began to fall. Though I was terrified for him and Edward, for the first time since I could remember, I didn't want them with me as I got over my vision since it was because of me that I had that image. I wanted someone else… "Jasper…" I muttered pleadingly through my tears.

Edward and Emmett looked at each other hesitantly, and I knew instantly that they didn't know where Jasper was. But I remembered Rosalie saying something about her, Bella, and Jasper going to talk to Carlisle. Couldn't we go look for them around where he was working? "Please…" I whispered. He, at least from what I saw in that vision, could have handled that man…

"What happened?"

I gasped when I heard the new voice, and I quickly turned to look at the top of the hill as Edward and Emmett did the same. My eyes filled with more tears when I saw that Jasper was looking down at me with concern with Bella and Rosalie behind him. "Jasper…" I attempted to say, but my voice was choked up by tears.

Jasper looked alarmed when he saw how upset I was, and he ran the short distance down the hill to us with his sisters, kneeling down in front of me as he placed his cold hand on my shoulder. "Alice, what's wrong?" he asked quietly in a tranquil voice in an effort to make me calmer. "What happened?"

I heard Emmett mutter something about how it was lucky that the Cullen siblings happened to be in the area when we needed them, but I ignored him as I leaned forward and wrapped my arms around Jasper, burying my face into his chest as my shoulders shook. Thankfully, Jasper didn't seem to mind, for he simply wrapped his arms around me and allowed me to cry against him.

After a few moments, he shifted so that he could lean down and speak quietly to me. "Let's go somewhere else to talk," he whispered. "I know the perfect place."

When I heard his gentle voice in my ear, I suddenly felt a strange sense of peace as a calming wave passed through me. I slowly opened my eyes and looked up at him, seeing that he was giving me a small smile, which gave me the strength to nod in answer and allow him to help me to my feet. I glared a little at Edward when I saw that he was giving Jasper a threatening look, but it immediately disappeared since I felt terrible about it when I thought about the vision I had just had. I saw the complete shock written clearly on his face at my quick change in mood, and I was relieved when Bella knelt down on the grass beside him and placed her hand on his shoulder reassuringly.

But Edward's reaction to the situation wasn't the strangest. I was used to him giving Jasper warning looks when he was near me, but this time, he wasn't the only one. Rosalie was standing between Edward and Emmett, glaring daggers at her twin brother. Jasper glared darkly back at her before he took my wrist and gently began to lead me up the hill away from our siblings. I glanced behind me, seeing that Rosalie was still giving Jasper a warning look before we were out of sight.

"What is she so angry about?" I asked quietly as Jasper pulled me across the parking lot.

"It doesn't matter," Jasper answered, almost too quickly, as we took a sharp right when we were about halfway through the lot. "It is not you that she's angry with."

I couldn't even ask where we were going before we were on grass once again, heading down a path through the dense tress I hadn't even known was there before away from the broad path that led to the cabins. I looked around at the forest surrounding us, and I clung to Jasper's sleeve when I saw slight movement and heard a twig snap somewhere off to my right. Why was he wearing a light sweater anyway? It was summer…

"It's just an animal," Jasper muttered to me with a slight laugh, strangely making me feel somewhat calmer. But I still didn't release my tight grip on his arm as we walked. "You really are jumpy, Alice. What has you so shaken up?"

Tears formed in my eyes as I turned away from him to wipe them away, my voice refusing to work. I couldn't tell him what I had seen, not yet. Jasper seemed to understand, so he didn't push the subject further.

The path we were walking on soon sloped uphill, and we reached the top without another word. When I saw where we had ended up, my eyes widened at the beauty of it. Jasper and I were standing on top of a hill with a single tree at its peak, overlooking the lake beneath us. I slowly walked to the edge and looked down, seeing Edward, Emmett, Rosalie, and Bella far beneath us. I turned around, and my heart fluttered when I saw the small smile my friend was giving me. "Jasper, this place is… _wonderful_," I breathed, a smile appearing on my own tear-stained face. There was something familiar about it also, but I just couldn't put my finger on it… "How did you find it?"

Jasper shrugged as he took a couple of steps toward me, but still stayed in the shadows the lone tree provided, though there wasn't much sun to speak of. "I was having a look around the camp before Rosalie and Bella came to get me so we could speak with Carlisle," he replied. "I found that it's a good place to just speak your thoughts aloud. Plus, I needed to get away from Rosalie for a while."

I crossed my arms in front of me. "And you're not going to tell me why she's so angry with you, are you?" I muttered, my tone making it more of a statement than a question.

The amused smirk on Jasper's face annoyed me. "Nope," he confirmed. "That would be a… _family_ matter."

I sighed with irritation, an action which caused Jasper to laugh a little. But then, his smile vanished and was replaced by a concerned look. "But the main reason I wanted to speak with you alone is because… I am worried about you, especially after what happened a little while ago. I could feel the emotions of you and your brothers as Bella, Rose, and I approached the lake, but then yours completely left you. And then, a short time later, you screamed with terrible fear. You cried my name and asked for my help, but I didn't know what I could do to help you though I greatly wanted to. All I could feel from you was fear… and sorrow…"

Tears formed in my eyes at his words, and I took a couple of steps in his direction so that I was standing closer to him. I looked up into his face, into his brilliant, golden eyes, and saw that he was looking back at me with concern… and was that a little compassion? I must have been imagining that last part… Wishful thinking, you know?

"You are an amazingly strong person after all you've been through, Alice," Jasper said so quietly and gently that it was almost a whisper. "Tell me what has hurt you so badly, and I will help you in any way that I can."

I fought the urge to hug him tightly as my tears started to fall. I began to raise my hand to try to wipe them away, but Jasper beat me to it. He used his thumb to gently wipe away my tears, his touch leaving a trail of coldness behind. I looked up at him, hoping for some source of strength as my shoulders shook, my next words coming out as broken as I felt.

"Edward and Emmett are going to die… I saw it, Jasper, I saw it…"

Jasper's eyes narrowed as he placed his arm around me lightly. Clearly, that hadn't been what he had been expecting to hear. "Hold on," he muttered. "What do you mean you _saw_ it?"

For a moment, I wondered what I should tell him. Bella knew about my unique ability, but I considered her to be my sister. Of course she knew since I could tell her anything. But if I told Jasper, would he think that I was crazy? Worth a shot, I guess…

"This is going to make me sound as though I belong in an asylum, but you have to believe me," I said, surprised as my tears slowed and I suddenly felt much more confident. I slowly looked up into Jasper's face, and I saw that he was giving me an encouraging look, though there was an underlying spark of emotion I couldn't read at the sound of the word _asylum_… But, I took a deep breath and continued on. "When my emotions leave me, as you say, I see things… things that could happen. It's not always right since people constantly change their minds, but I have seen a lot of things that actually come to pass… Who am I kidding? You probably think I've lost my mind…"

Jasper didn't say anything for a long moment, and I sighed as I looked down, afraid to look into his face. Then, his arm around me tightened a little, and I looked up again with confusion to see that he was smiling. "Believe it or not, that doesn't seem as shocking to me as you may thing," he told me quietly. "When you're a part of my family, much stranger things happen. But anyway, you said that you saw your brothers…"

I nodded since that was the only thing I could do at the moment. I didn't trust my voice right now. But for some reason, he seemed much too casual about the fact that I could had these visions… He hadn't known that already, had he? How could he have?

"Well, I don't believe you have to worry about Emmett and Edward," Jasper said, running a finger lightly over my neck right under my chin, which made me smile broadly since that was one of my many ticklish spots. "You even said yourself that things can change. Believe me, I'm sure everything will be fine."

After another moment, I sighed and wiped my tears away. For some reason, I had a feeling that what Jasper said was true… "Thanks, Jazz."

At my quiet statement, I watched as Jasper's eyes shone with amusement as he looked at me curiously. I was instantly confused. "What? Did I say something wrong?" It had only been a _thank you_…

"No, no. It's not that." He smiled. "It's just that this is the first time you've ever called me that. Bella's typically the only one who does."

Did I really just call him _Jazz_? I hadn't meant to… I had just heard Bella say it so much that I was used to it, I guess. "I'm sorry. I won't call you that again if you don't want me to."

Jasper laughed. "No, it's fine," he said. "I just wasn't expecting it coming from you, that's all."

I laughed a little myself. "All right, I just might have to call you that then," I told him. "I like it. The only nickname I have is Al, and Emmett's really the only one who calls me that. But, if you wanted to…"

My sentence trailed off as Jasper shook his head, and I looked at him quizzically. "I much prefer Alice," he explained, a statement which made me smile again. I would ask him how he felt about my real name, but at another time.

Jasper then looked over the edge of the hill down at the lake before turning back to me. "Let's get heading back," he suggested. "More people are beginning to gather, and the campfire should be starting in a little while. Besides, I'm sure that your brothers are concerned about you since you're with me. After all, it's not often that I steal you away."

* * *

"Hey, Ali! Good to see you alive and well!"

_Ali_?! Okay, after the campfire-gathering thing started, I was in a much better mood. I had even been able to almost forget about my terrible vision after the talk I had with Jasper, and now Edward and I were standing in line as we waited to grab our food, which consisted of hot dogs, brats, and hamburger being grilled. That's when _he_ had to show up and ruin things.

I quickly spun around, my eyes like daggers, and watched as Jacob Black ran up to me, a large smile on his face. Unfortunately, my glare didn't pass of as too intimidating since he was so much taller than me. "First off, my name is _Alice_," I snapped. "What do you want anyway?"

As I said, not very intimidating. "Nice to see you too!" Jacob laughed. Then, he leaned in forward so that his face was close to my neck, and he sniffed quickly but pretty loudly. "Hmm, you still smell really good…"

"What do you think you're doing?" I demanded, pushing him away. At least, I tried to push him away. Almost like Jasper, his skin was hard, and I didn't even budge him.

Jacob raised his head and slowly looked into my face with confusion, and my angry look quickly faded away. "You don't know, do you?" he asked quietly in nearly a whisper. "He still didn't tell you…"

I suddenly felt very uneasy. "Who didn't tell me what?" I muttered. "And I _smell_ good? I thought I'd heard all the bad pick-up lines…"

But Jacob didn't seem to hear my last statement. His eyes were away from me entirely, trained on someone else in the crowd. I followed his gaze, and I saw that they were locked on Jasper where he sat at the edge of the lake with Bella and Rosalie. I watched as he slowly looked up at where we were standing, and his golden eyes narrowed as he glared back at the guy with me.

"Nothing," Jacob said as he slowly looked back at me, his expression softening. "It's nothing. But you smell good because… I like your shampoo."

I raised my eyebrow, not believing a word of what he was saying. Something was up… But as Jacob awkwardly turned to go, an idea suddenly came to me. "Jacob, wait!"

Jacob turned back to look at me, confused. "Yeah, Ali?"

I frowned. "_Alice_."

Jacob laughed. "Hey, I wouldn't mind if you called me Jake," he said.

All right, I may not have completely followed his logic, but I didn't have to right now. It wasn't important what his name was. But his eyes _did_ shine beautifully when he smiled… No, don't think like that! I shook my head, trying to drive the thought from my mind. "Uh, you seem to have a… _history_ with the Cullen family, Jake," I muttered, trying to see if he would respond better to me if I used his preferred nickname. "I know that something is different about them since I've been close to them for the past two years, but I don't know what it is. Do you happen to know anything?"

What happened next, I did not expect. Jacob's smile vanished, and he slowly, almost hesitantly, reached out and took my hand in his larger one. I gasped as his long fingers wrapped around mine. Unlike the cold hands of the Cullens that I had grown accustomed to, Jacob's hands were _hot_- almost as if they were on fire. "Jake, are you okay? You're burning up!"

"I'm fine," Jacob assured me, quickly pulling his hand away and clearing his throat. Though the air around me was arm, my hand was now cold from where he had touched it. "But as for the Cullens… if you really want to know, that will be something only he can tell you. But just believe me when I say that they're dangerous, Alice. It would be better for you if you stayed away from them. You'll be safe then." And before I could say anything else, Jacob turned from me and walked away, walking over to join two other teenagers that were helping with the camp- the only girl in the group and the boy who appeared to be her younger brother.

The Cullens were _dangerous_? I somehow didn't believe that, no matter how many times I heard it. For a minute, the crazy thought that Jacob was just jealous crossed my mind. But he had nothing to be jealous of- I wasn't dating anyone, and Jasper and I were only good friends, nothing more.

But the important thing was, Jacob had admitted that there was something up with the Cullen family. And though he had said that I would have to hear it from Jasper, I knew that he wouldn't tell me, which meant that Jacob would have to be my source.

* * *

After I ate my hot dog and bag of cheddar-flavored chips, I spent a lot of time playing beach volleyball with Angela, Eric, Mike, Jessica, and Tyler. But when I got tired of that, I sat with Jasper and just looked out at the lake, talking about things that randomly came to mind. Edward and Rosalie both seemed to be disapproving of this, but not as disapproving as Jacob. He was constantly standing a short distance away from where I sat, always seeming like he wanted to say something but never did, and instead, walked away.

I left Jasper for a short time to get some water, seeing that Emmett and Edward were already by the cooler, but I stopped and listened in when I heard them having a quiet conversation. It was about me.

"I don't know, Emmett. I just don't think that Jasper would be good for her."

"Come on, lighten up, Ed," Emmett said with frustration as he grabbed a water bottle out of the cooler. "Jasper's a good guy. We sometimes talked at school during that last week when he was there. I don't see anything wrong with it if Al wants to go to the dance with him or something." How did they know about that? Was I really _that_ obvious? "Besides, you'll have to get used to him since we're sharing a cabin with him for the next three months."

"There's just something not right about him, something that I don't trust," Edward muttered thoughtfully as he took the water bottle Emmett offered him. "I think someone else would be better for her, that's all."

Emmett laughed. "Like who? Jacob Black? Dude, that guy hovers around her like a hungry vulture! And whenever he looks at her, I can see that it's in a possessive way, like he's the only guy who can have her. Or how about Mike Newton, the kid that's always trailing along after her like some sort of golden retriever or something? No way, Man. I don't want that for my little sister. Jasper doesn't do that. From what I can see, he cares about her, and they seem to be really good friends already."

Okay, enough was enough. It was my life after all, and I made my own decisions… "I think I can decide who I want for myself, guys," I announced in an irritated tone.

Edward and Emmett jumped and turned around, staring at me with shock as if they had seen a ghost. "Oh, hey, Al," the older of the two said. "How long have you been standing there?"

"Long enough," I snapped. I strode forward and grabbed a water bottle out of the cooler without a word before turning and hurrying away from my brothers as I head back toward the lake. I was frustrated to no end about how much they wanted to control my life, at least when it came to relationships. I knew that all they wanted to do was protect me, but I was old enough now to make decisions for myself.

Besides, if it ever came down to making a choice between Jasper and Jacob- Mike wasn't even an option- I already knew who I would choose.

**A/N**: All right, that's it for this one! The next chapter really start things off, I promise. But just a reminder, there is a reason why Jasper cares so much about Alice, which will be explained in the sequel. But, there are some clues (there were some in this chapter) that will be dispersed through the story about why their relationship is so deep. So, keep an eye out for them! Thanks for reading! Oh, and like always, enjoy the preview!

**Next Chapter**: _Scary Stories and a Midnight Swim_

_Sam paused in his pacing as he paused in the story, and his eyes landed directly on me. I looked back at him, my horror and confusion showing through in my eyes as I hoped that he could give me some answers. Sam took a couple of steps forward in my direction, closer to the fire, his eyes never leaving me as he spoke the next words._

Xxx

_I didn't need his begging- I already knew what Sam was trying to warn me about, though I didn't believe it at all._

_But though it was completely crazy, I still couldn't get the nagging sensation out of my mind, nor could I get the dark feeling to leave my heart. I realized with a chilling feeling that Jasper fit the descriptions of a vampire._

Xxx

_He was coming for me, I knew that now. He just kept changing his mind about how he was going to get to me. The man, the monster, I thought I had seen at our cabin window truly was out there somewhere. He wanted my blood. But each time he thought of a way to reach me, someone I loved was killed. I knew that this man would find me one day and kill me, it was just a matter of time. But I wasn't afraid. I was just afraid for the lives of the people close to me. I would have to make sure that I was completely alone when this man came to claim my life._


	12. Chapter 11: Scary StoriesMidnight Swim

**Disclaimer**: Nope, characters still aren't mine. I'm just borrowing them.

**A/N**: Hey, thanks for the reviews, guys! I appreciate them all! So, here I am with another update for you! Can you tell that I don't like Jacob either, lol? But, enjoy, everyone!

_Chapter 11- Scary Stories and a Midnight Swim_

The only thing I didn't do while at the lake was swim. I was saving it for when a group of us came back at midnight, after the actual event was over. I was wearing my two-piece suit beneath my clothes, which I didn't want to get wet since I would have to deal with a wet shirt and shorts for the rest of the time. Besides, I could wait to go swimming until a time when it would be more fun.

But soon, day turned into night, and the full moon, hidden partially by the clouds, hung in the sky over the lake. All of the kids and chaperones that had gathered for the event now sat on the decent-sized patch of sand that made up the only beach at the camp. We sat in a ring around a large campfire that had been built, and knowing what was probably going to happen, I sat near the back row of the circle with Edward and Emmett tight on either side of me and Jacob on the other side of Edward. Jasper, Rosalie, and Bella sat behind us, just out of the glow from the fire and instead surrounded by the night's shadows.

The excited chatter of the large group suddenly ceased as one of the boys from the La Push reservation back in Forks stood up and towered over the fire, the dancing flames casting menacing shadows on his darker-toned face. But even without the effects, he appeared to be the oldest of their group with hair that flowed down like silk a little past his shoulders and dark, piercing eyes that studied us intently.

"Hello," he addressed the group surrounding him with a slight nod. He even had the strong voice of a leader. "My name is Sam, and I want to welcome you to Camp Lupine. This is the part of your trip where we traditionally tell you some of the stories from our culture. Yes, some parts may be frightening, so those of you who have weak stomachs…" He didn't finish his sentence, but he didn't have to for his point to be made. A nervous chatter moved through the crowd, to which Sam only smiled in response.

"Hey, that's you, Al," Emmett said jokingly, elbowing me playfully in the ribs. "You may want to head out now while you still have the chance!"

I wrapped my arms around my knees and brought them close to my chest before resting my chin on them so that I was in a protective position, giving my oldest brother a disgruntled look. "I can handle it…" I muttered as I noticed Jacob give me a concerned look out of the corner of my eye. At least, I hoped I could.

Not too surprisingly, a few girls stood up toward the front row of the circle and walked away from the fire, accompanied by a female teacher that had come with us. I didn't recognize them, so they must have been in a lower or higher grade than me. Once they were gone, Sam did one final sweep of the circle to see if anyone else was going to bail. When he got no response, a smile spread across his face. "Good. Then we can begin."

I watched nervously as he began to pace a little around the fire, wondering what kind of story that he was going to tell. I hoped that they wouldn't be _too_ scary…

How bad could they be?

"Before I get into it too far, I would like to take this time to clarify that some of the things that I am about to tell you may seem impossible," Sam told us. "But they are things that our ancestors believed, legends that are passed down from generation to generation on the reservation. I ask you to keep an open mind as we move through the story. Thank you.

"Now, when we look at the history of our tribe, it is often cited that our very first forefathers were not human. It is said that our tribe is descended from wolves." Sam paused, but when no one said a word and the anxious silence hung heavily around us, he continued on. "As time moved on, they began to take on more humanistic features, becoming creatures that were half wolf, half man. Finally, all traces of the creature were gone, leaving only the man behind.

"But the wolf gene still moved down through the ages, and though it may skip some generations, it is said that even part of our tribe today may carry it. It enables a man to control both beings, the man and the wolf, at will."

I was entranced in the story, as was everyone around me. The way Sam spoke as he continued to describe how members of their tribe on the reservation could turn into what their ancestors could one have been was beautiful, his words weaving the pictures so clearly that for a moment, I believed what he was saying, even though it was impossible as he had said himself.

"Though a man knew if he possessed the gene, he rarely turned to his other form since self-control was much more difficult once he had his animal instincts while hunting free. But it did not matter if he used his power or not, at least not until it was needed a few centuries ago."

The story suddenly took on a darker tone, and I found myself hugging my legs closer to me while everyone appeared to be a little more tense as they waited to hear what happened next.

Sam's eyes were dark as he continued. "Three of the tribe's greatest warriors and hunters were out looking for food when they were met with three strange beings.

"Their skin was very pale, like alabaster…"

I gasped as my eyes widened since that description sounded very familiar. I thought about the three people sitting behind me, as well as their adoptive parents. They all had very pale skin- unnaturally so…

"Their skin was cold, like ice…"

I saw Jasper wrap his hand gently around my arm over the bruise I had gotten during my encounter with Royce King when we were on the bus on the way to the camp in my mind's eye. His fingers had been cold, _very_ cold, almost like an icepack…

"Two of their eyes were crimson, deep as blood, while the third's were black, deep and empty…"

I remembered the first time that I had ever seen Jasper. His eyes had been black and filled with hate. I remembered the dreams I had of him where his eyes had been the same red color Sam had described, filled with bloodlust…

"They were incredibly fast, much too fast for the human eye to see…"

I imagined what Jasper must have looked like running to save me from being hit by Tyler's truck. There was _no_ way a normal person could run such a great distance in so short of a time. Had anyone even seen him?

"… and stronger than even cam be imagined by any extent of the imagination…"

I remembered the night that I had met Royce in Port Angeles. Jasper had pulled him from him so effortlessly it was almost nothing. I remembered hearing the sound of Royce's bones shattering when Jasper's fist came in contact with his jaw… I remembered my dream of that same event where Jasper had torn Royce's men to shreds as easily as if they were paper…

Sam paused in his pacing as he paused in the story, and his eyes landed directly on me. I looked back at him, my horror and confusion showing through in my eyes as I hoped that he could give me some answers. Sam took a couple of steps forward in my direction, closer to the fire, his eye never leaving me as he spoke the next words.

"They were monsters in their purest form, demons designed only with the intent to kill. Yet they were some of the most attractive beings that exist in our world. Everything about them lures you closer, but it is only a cover to trap anyone weak enough to be drawn in by their trap."

I shivered slightly. Even before I had known Jasper and had only seen him in my visions of him, I had thought that he was one of the most beautiful people I had ever seen. And now that I did know him, I always felt attracted to him, and all I wanted was to be close to him…

Emmett looked over at me and smirked when he saw my shaken expression. "Scared, Al?" he whispered teasingly.

"No." My answer was automatic since it wasn't the story that was scaring me… I saw Jacob looking over at me with concern, but I ignored him. I wanted to hear the rest of Sam's story, to try to figure out what he was trying to tell me…

"They were heartless, soulless creatures who were driven by their lust for blood," Sam continued quietly, his gaze still never leaving me. It occurred to me then that it was almost like he was _warning_ me about some sort of danger he must have thought I was in… "They have no feeling, no remorse when they take a life. They kill to survive."

I remembered the dreams that I had of Jasper where he had bitten my neck to drink my blood and when he had done the same to Royce in the second one that I had…

But the part about being heartless didn't fit. I could remember the countless times where Jasper had shown that he cared about me. The times he had saved my life, the night at his home when we had sat on the couch and played his guitar together, earlier today when he had comforted me after my vision… It just didn't add up.

Why was I comparing Jasper to these creatures Sam was describing anyway?

"They feast on human blood, draining their victims as they drink the very life from them…"

"_I have a… strange eating schedule."_

Jasper's words from lunch rang clearly in my head now as the image of him drinking my blood flashed through my mind again, and I couldn't believe that I hadn't paid more attention to them before. He had drunk some of my orange juice only because I kept insisting, but it had been a difficult task for him since it had been disgusting to him. Other than that, I had never seen him eat…

_Leech_… the name that Jacob had called Jasper before. How much it fit now…

"Some claim to be different." Sam still spoke darkly, still directly to me. "Some say that they are not vicious killers. But deep down, they're all the same."

_"Jacob, I know you don't like my family being here, but you know that my family is different."_

_Different._

That had been the key word in Jasper's sentence when he had confronted Jacob. Again, I hadn't paid any attention to its importance until now, while Sam looked me in the eye and warned me about something that I wasn't sure of.

"These creatures, who according to our tribe are still around today, maybe even at this very campsite, are what you all know as vampires."

_Vampires_. My eyes widened with fear as I gasped quietly. Sam nodded slightly tome as if in understanding as he paused for another moment to let the newest part of his story sink in. A nervous chatter ran through the crowd, but my eyes were only on Sam as everything fell into place.

No, I couldn't believe that it was true. Vampires simply didn't exist. Besides, it was only an old legend. Those were hardly ever true…

I barely heard the rest of Sam's story as he talked about how the three tribe members and the three vampires had all been killed in the struggle that took place, which is why the had become such heated enemies. I only tuned in again when he mentioned something about an agreement.

"A couple of centuries later, a few more of our best hunters came across a coven of five vampires claiming to be a family who was feeding on animals in our territory. The man who seemed to be the father figure spoke with great authority, but he had a strong sense of peace and compassion about him that made our hunters listen to every word he said. He claimed that he, his mate, and his "children" did not feed on humans but only on the blood of animals. Though admitting that it was a more difficult lifestyle, he also said that it was worth the sacrifice and struggle not to kill humans.

"Since the wolves of our tribe have become the protectors of humans over the years after the first encounter with the vampires, an agreement was made between them and this coven. Our warriors told them that they would not bother or kill any member of their coven unless one of the vampires either killed or turned a human into one of their own. They also could not hung on their territory any longer. Any one of these things would start a war if they were infringed upon. So far, according to the legend, that agreement has not been broken."

I remembered the rest of Jasper's words to Jacob when we were confronted by him earlier today. _"The agreement between us goes far back, and Carlisle has kept it since it was made. We won't be the ones to break it." _

Was this the same agreement? Jasper _had_ told me that there was a rivalry between his family and Jacob's… No. It couldn't be the same thing. If that had been the same agreement, then Carlisle, Esme, Jasper, Rosalie, and Bella would all be vampires and at least two hundred years old. There was _no way_ that was even remotely possible!

I guess that had been the end of Sam's story since he didn't say anything more, and a loud applause began from everyone who had gathered. I clapped a couple of times, but then looked over at Jacob when I felt his eyes on me. I saw that he was giving me a pleading look as if he was begging me to understand what Sam had been trying to say, but I turned away from him and sighed, staring into the fire.

I didn't need his begging- I already knew what Sam was trying to warn me about, though I didn't believe it at all.

But though it was completely crazy, I still couldn't get the nagging sensation out of my mind, nor could I get the dark feeling to leave my heart. I realized with a chilling feeling that Jasper fit the descriptions of a vampire.

* * *

"All right, there's only five minutes left until midnight. Let's go."

I snuck out of the cabin with Bella beside me, closing the door behind us. Rosalie had decided that she was going to stay at the cabin instead of coming along, but I definitely wanted to go on this midnight swim. Though I was wearing my purple two-piece suit, the night air was still mild enough so that I wasn't cold. Bella, wearing her blue one-piece suit, didn't seem to be cold either as we headed toward the joining path.

The fact that we were heading back to the lake for a swim completely drove Sam's vampire story out of my mind. I hurried forward with Bella as a couple of other girls caught up with us, anxious to get to swimming as soon as possible to _keep_ it out of my head.

We rounded the corner, and I saw that Edward, Emmett, and Jasper were waiting for us. But color rushed to my face and my heart sped up drastically when I saw Jasper. God, he looked great without a shirt… All right, stop. Totally inappropriate thought, Alice…

However, Jasper still smiled when I reached him, which made me slightly nervous. If he could feel my emotions… I hoped the feelings I had given off weren't _too_ awkward. We began walking down the path together while Bella immediately went to Edward's side and walked with him behind us. Emmett brought up the rear, seeming to be missing Rosalie. But what he felt left out on with her, he made up with jokes.

"Be careful, or the vampires might get ya!" he exclaimed, leaning forward close to Bella. She curled her arms around her and shrunk back defensively, turning away from Emmett.

I glanced back and watched with surprise as Edward put his arm around her protectively and pulled her close. "Hey, knock it off, Emmett," he snapped, smacking our oldest brother in the arm while Emmett just laughed. "You're scaring her."

One look at Bella's face, and I knew that she hadn't been scared by what had been said by Emmett. Edward had misinterpreted her actions, for she just seemed tense and on edge. Jasper even appeared to be uncomfortable by Emmett's joking.

When we finally reached the lake, I saw that there were already some kids from school swimming and splashing around. I also saw that two of the boys from the La Push reservation were among them, but upon closer inspection, I saw with relief that neither one of them were Jacob or Sam. We hurried down to the small beach where the story had been told earlier, looking out at the dark water.

"Hey, I'll race you to that platform out there," I suddenly said, pointing to the floating, green square out almost halfway across the lake. I was a pretty good swimmer, at least about as fast as Edward.

Emmett laughed. He loved competition. "All right, Sis. You're on!" He looked at Edward, Bella, and Jasper. "Guys ready?" When he got nods in response, he smiled broadly. "All right. One… two… three!"

All five of us began to run out into the water, but I didn't get far before a hot hand grabbed my arm. "Ali, wait."

I turned around angrily, knowing the one person who would call me by that name. Where did he come from anyway? "It's _Alice_," I snapped, pulling my arm out of his hand. "What do you want, Jake?"

Jacob looked back at me nervously, but also intensely. "How… how did you like Sam's story?" he asked quietly.

Was that all he wanted? I rolled my eyes with annoyance. "It was great. He's a wonderful storyteller," I muttered. "Will you let me go swimming with my friends now?" I really wasn't in the mood to hear about Sam's story at the moment. All I wanted to do was have fun with my best friends and brothers, which Jacob was preventing.

"I asked him to tell that story," Jacob continued as if he hadn't heard me, not meeting my gaze. "I… I wanted to tell you…"

"Tell me what?" I interrupted him in a frustrated tone. "To warn me that Jasper and his family are vampires? Get real, Jake."

Jacob looked at me with shock, but I was too angry to let him say anything else. "You know what? I don't know what you're so jealous of, Jake, but it's really starting to test my patience. So I would appreciate it if you just stayed out of my business and stopped trying to mess up my friendship with Jasper."

I saw his dumbfounded expression before I turned away from him, beginning to walk into the water. Maybe my theory was wrong, but I didn't care at the moment. I heard him begin to mutter something about how he wasn't jealous, but I didn't hear his whole statement as I got far enough into the lake and went underwater.

The temperature was perfectly comfortable as I swam toward the platform, soon swimming to the surface for much-needed air. I had lost the race thanks to Jacob's interference, and I saw that everyone I was _supposed_ to compete against were already standing on the platform. I wasn't sure who had gotten there first as I casually swam toward them now, but by the way Bella was comforting Edward and Emmett, it clearly hadn't been one of them.

Suddenly, I gasped as I stopped swimming. My vision was beginning to fade…

Please, not now…

"Al, are you okay?" Emmett shouted to me.

But I couldn't answer them. My panicked eyes flew to Jasper's face, and his alarmed expression was the last thing I saw before my vision faded completely…

_I was standing very close to Jasper on top of the hill he had taken me to before, my body pressed against his as if it was molded perfectly to fit. I stared deep into his brilliant golden eyes before he closed them as he slowly leaned down and kissed me. I returned the action with intensity while I closed my eyes, putting my arms around his neck while he wound his arms around my waist and lifted me a little bit so that I was closer to his height. I wrapped one of my legs around his waist to try to keep my balance since I wasn't used to that yet as his hand moved down to the bottom of my back and rested there, the slight pressure pushing my body even closer to his. My own hand snuck beneath his shirt at his collar to his stone back, and he began to kiss me with a little more intensity at my action as he let his guard down slightly. Knowing that nothing bad would happen to me, I tried to deepen the kiss. Seeming to guess what I had in mind, his lips slowly, hesitantly began to part a little beneath mine…_

_But then, our moment was interrupted by an almost silent footstep accompanied by a slight laugh. "How very touching," a cruel voice that I now recognized said cheerfully. "I do hope that I'm not interrupting anything."_

_What happened next happened so fast that I barely realized what was happening. Jasper released me and spun around, keeping me behind him in a protective way as he faced who had discovered us. I snuck a glance from behind his arm, grabbing onto it tightly with fear as I watched the man with the blond ponytail and crimson eyes approached us. From what I remembered of Sam's story, I knew that he was a vampire…_

_"Alice, it's time that we finally met," he said with a smile._

_Jasper bared his teeth in warning, and I was startled when I heard what almost sounded like a growl emit from his throat. "You stay away from her," he snarled, and I gasped when I heard something in his tone that sounded almost… _inhuman._ "She's mine!"_

_But the man seemed unfazed by his words, and his grin broadened. "Well, I guess I'll just have to take her by force then," he muttered, his red eyes gleaming. He seemed eager for the challenge…_

_I gasped as Jasper tensed before me, and I looked up into his face with fear. "Just try," he told him threateningly. But before he did anything more, he turned his head to look back at me. "I love you," he whispered, kissing my lips quickly before he lunged at the other man._

_As the two of them danced around faster than I could follow them with my eyes, I weakly sank to my knees as tears threatened to fall. No… not Jasper too… I couldn't lose him…_

_Suddenly, my heart nearly stopped when I heard a familiar cry of pain, and I watched with fear as Jasper fell to the grass a few feet in front of me, tensed in pain. The other man landed right beside him, smirking cruelly._

"_You know, your ability to feel the emotions of others can really be a weakness for you," he muttered with pure hatred in his voice, tilting Jasper's head back so that his neck was exposed. His red eyes traveled to me with amusement. "Are you watching, my dear?"_

_I cried out to stop him when I knew what he was going to do, but it did no good. My tears flowed quickly as I screamed, watching as the man sprung forward so fast I could hardly see him and sank his teeth into Jasper's throat. There was a loud tearing sound, and Jasper was still._

_I was sobbing uncontrollably as I watched the man stand up, light a match, and drop it on Jasper, his body quickly being consumed by the flames. I began to shake as my eyes remained on the crackling flames, reaching out toward them longingly. Jasper… I barely noticed anything around me as the man walked around the fire and lifted me up roughly by the shoulders, preparing to kill me…_

* * *

He was looking for me, I knew that now. He just kept changing his mind about how he was going to get to me. The man, the monster, I thought I had seen at our cabin window truly was out there somewhere. He wanted my blood. But each time he thought of a way to reach me, someone I loved was killed. I knew that this man would find me one day and kill me, it was just a matter of time. But I wasn't afraid. I was just afraid for the lives of the people close to me. I would have to make sure that I was completely alone when this man came to end my life.

There was no way I would let those last two visions come true.

But I didn't have time to worry about that now. I had even forgotten that I was in the lake until I felt the coolness of the water around me. But I didn't have the strength to continue on. I could hear the anxious voices of my friends and brothers calling my name as they waited for me on the platform, but those soon vanished as I felt myself completely slip beneath the water's surface and into darkness.

**A/N**: Another cliffie! For those of you new to my writing, you'll notice that I'll use a lot of these things. I love them! But I do feel really terrible for what I did to Jasper in this chapter. Hopefully, Alice will be able to prevent it… All right, there's going to be something different about the preview this time. Unless marked by a character's name in parentheses before the section, it will be from Alice's point of view. In this chapter (and a couple of more after this), there will be some from Jasper's point of view, which I will mark. But if there's no character before the section, it's Alice's. Let's try this! Enjoy the preview!

**Next Chapter**:_ "Drowning is Not Something That is on My 'Fun Things to Do' List"_

(Jasper) _"She's not breathing."_

Xxx

(Jasper) _I wasn't sure of the emotions I was getting from her, but I was getting some quick flashes- fear, relief… _love_. I wasn't sure where that last emotion was coming from, but I had at least somewhat of an idea when she slowly raised her hand and weakly wrapped it around mine, completely ignoring Jacob, who was also near her. I tightened my hand around hers, assuring her that she would be all right and that I was there for her. For one, short moment, I realized that if I wasn't so different from her, so dangerous, I could love her the way she wanted me to…_

Xxx

_I felt like I was floating in limbo. Like seriously, it was the weirdest feeling ever. I hated it. There was nothing but… _nothing_ around me, I guess. It was just a big, black, empty void of… _nothing._ But there _was_ this heavy feeling hanging over me that was compressing my lungs and making it difficult for me to breathe…_

Xxx

"_I swear Jasper, if you even come _close_ to harming her, or if you let _anything_ happen to her, I _will_ tear your head off with my bare hands," Jacob threatened with a hiss._

_Jasper did not seem to be affected by his words, however, and a smirk appeared on his face at the threat. "I would like to see you try, mongrel."_

Xxx

Rubbing my eyes to wipe my tears away, I slowly raised my head to look at Jasper, and I was shocked to see that his face was only inches above me, his perfect lips so close to mine. All I would have to do is lean forward a tiny bit and… No, Alice. Stop. You can't think like that. You're not dating him. You don't even know if he likes you like that. It would be so totally inappropriate to kiss him, no matter how much you want to…

_But surprisingly, Jasper didn't move away as he looked into my dark eyes. I could almost feel his hesitance as he slowly moved forward a little, and I could almost feel the coldness of his lips against mine._

Xxx

"_Let me guess. You're not human, are you?"_


	13. Chapter 12: Not on my Fun List

**Disclaimer**: Check previous chapters to know that the characters aren't mine!

**A/N**: Hey! Sorry I haven't updated for a while after leaving you all on such an evil cliffhanger (there will be more, I can guarantee it). But, I'm glad you liked the last chapter, and I'm pretty sure you'll like this one. It should be interesting since Alice is falling for Jasper even more now, lol. Oh, and there's a section at the beginning that's from Jasper's point of view, but it will switch back to Alice after that. But anyway, thanks for your reviews, and enjoy!

_Chapter 12- "Drowning is Not Something that is on My 'Fun Things to Do' List"_

_Jasper POV_

I wasn't sure what drove me to dive into the lake after I watched Alice fall beneath the surface, but I was in the water before I even stopped to make sense of what I was doing. I was grateful for my sharp sight since I could see her clearly in the murky water ahead of me. My greater strength pushed me forward at a faster rate than a normal human could ever hope to reach, and I reached Alice's limp form in only a matter of seconds. I gently put one arm behind her back and the other under her knees, almost hesitant to touch her. She looked _so_ fragile…

But before I could push us above water, though I personally didn't need air but I knew that Alice did, another dark figure approached us, and I had to back away as Jacob's reaching hands almost grabbed onto my arm. I glared at him darkly before pushing myself to the lake's surface, giving Alice the air she needed to breathe. Unfortunately, Jacob was right behind me, but I ignored him as I quickly climbed onto the green platform and gently set Alice down on her back. Emmett, Edward, and Bella came running over and knelt down around her while Jacob climbed out of the water as well, shaking himself off to dry a little before sitting with worry by Alice's head.

Edward leaned forward, placing his hand on his sister's pale face as he looked her over, and his fear and dread collided with me so forcefully that I wavered on my knees slightly. Bella, who was beside me, placed her hand on my shoulder and gave me silent reassurance.

"She's not breathing."

Edward's words hit me so hard in my dead heart that I knew it would be racing with fear if it was still beating. I looked down on Alice's still form, hearing her heart starting to slow. Alice, the frail, human girl who I was strangely drawn to and felt the need to watch out for and protect, was dying. I couldn't help but notice that she was much older now, so much more beautiful, than the first time I had met her, a time she may not have remembered. I had to do something, _anything_ to save her…

"Does anyone know CPR?" I asked quietly, looking at the four people kneeling around me. "Someone could force the air out of her lungs… and…"

My sentence slowly trailed off as I looked at the four defeated expressions around me, feeling the anxiety radiating from each of them. I sighed heavily in defeat as my gaze landed on Jacob. "I'm surprised you don't, dog," I muttered. "You help run the camp."

Jacob shrugged. "I wasn't trained in CPR," he admitted hesitantly. "That was mainly Sam and Leah." But then, his casualness was replaced by fear. "We have to do something to save her… fast." He reached forward and placed his large hand on Alice's head, running his fingers delicately through her hair.

I tensed with anger when I saw him do this, but I fought the feeling aside when Emmett looked up at me. There was a thin line of tears shining in his eyes, the worry he had for his sister hitting me in continuous waves. "Jasper… can you do anything? Like CPR or something?" He looked so pleading…

If matters wouldn't have been so pressing, I wouldn't even have considered the option that ran through my mind. The sound of Alice's wavering heart echoed loudly in my ears, and I knew that if something wasn't done shortly, she would die. I couldn't stand that thought… "I… I have used CPR a few times before…" I said quietly, looking down on Alice nervously. But that was different- that had been so many years ago when I was human…

I knew I could successfully perform CPR, but I was still unsure about using it. I was the newest member of my family, the one with the least self-control. If I got too close to Alice, could I stop myself from acting on the temptation of biting her? Could I accidentally snap and killed her, even though I cared about her?

"You can do it, Jazz," Bella whispered to me so softly that only I could hear her. "You have to. We have no other choice right now. Time is running out. Please, Jazz. You're strong enough to save Alice, I know you are."

I looked back at my adoptive sister, grateful for her support. It was definitely what I needed right now… I took a deep, unneeded breath as I looked down at Alice, one of the few people that I considered close to me. I knew that I couldn't live with myself if I simply allowed her to die. But I _really_ wouldn't be able to live with myself if I turned out to be too weak and _I_ was the one who took her life…

But she would have a better chance of living if I attempted to get her breathing again. It was my only option. I sighed heavily reaching forward and gently placing my hand on her cheek, running my thumb over her soft skin. "All right. Everyone back away to give her some space." Edward, Emmett, and Bella complied without hesitance, but Jacob stayed right where he was, his eyes never leaving the still form of Alice. I gave him the darkest look I could muster with all of the anxious emotions around me, sending threatening waves to him. "I _said_ back away, Jacob."

Jacob looked up at me, his expression sad and confused at the same time. After one last glance at Alice, he slowly, hesitantly moved away from her. I sighed with relief. I finally had the space I needed so that I hopefully wouldn't kill the girl that I knew we both cared strongly about. Telling myself over and over that I would not lose control, I gently placed my fingers on her petite nose to hold it shut before I slowly leaned down toward her, holding my breath as I placed my lips against hers before breathing oxygen into her. Then, I quickly pulled away and pushed down on her chest a few times before quickly moving back to her mouth to give her more air.

After a few repetitions of this, Alice's body jerked, and she sat up slightly as she coughed the water out of her lungs, laying her head weakly back on the platform as she continued to dryly cough. I placed my hand gently on top of her head, smiling with relief as she opened her eyes and looked up at me. "Hey, Alice," I muttered with a slightly laugh. "Welcome back."

Jacob immediately moved close to her again when he saw that she was conscious, but her dark eyes only held my face. I wasn't sure of the emotions that I was getting from her, but I was getting some quick flashes- fear, relief… _love_. I wasn't sure where the last emotion was coming from, but I had at least somewhat of an idea when she slowly raised her hand and weakly wrapped it around mine, completely ignoring Jacob who also sat near her. I tightened my hand around hers, assuring her that she would be all right and that I was there for her. For one short moment, I realized that if I wasn't so different from her, so dangerous, I could love her the way that she wanted me to…

But then, my eyes widened with worry when her hand began to go limp in mine. "Alice," I whispered anxiously, watching as her eyes slowly closed again, a soft smile lingering on her face.

* * *

_Alice POV_

I felt like I was floating in limbo. Like seriously, it was the weirdest feeling ever. I hated it. There was nothing but… _nothing_ around me, I guess. It was just a big, black, empty void of… _nothing_. But there _was_ this heavy feeling hanging over me that was compressing my lungs and making it difficult for me to breathe…

Suddenly, I felt something cold wrap around the exposed part of my back and beneath my knees. Where had that come from? I guess there was something here with me after all… Well, whatever it was began to pull me, and I wondered where I was being taken to when there was absolutely nothing around.

Then, I felt… a breeze? What was going on? Something hard was suddenly against my back, and the cold left me. No, I wanted it to stay! For some unknown reason, it was comforting to me. It let me know that I wasn't alone. Then, I heard the sound of what I thought was distant voices. Was I not alone after all? I looked around anxiously, trying to move from wherever I had been brought to. I _had_ to reach those voices. But it seemed as though no matter how hard I tried, I didn't get any closer to them…

"She's not breathing."

Those three words I recognized to be from Edward made me stop struggling. Who wasn't breathing? But after a moment, I could feel my lungs beginning to burn, and I realized that _I_ was the one who wasn't breathing. I fought to take a much-needed breath, discovering with dread that I couldn't. Edward… whoever's out there… help me!

I then felt something burning on my head, and I tried to scrunch away from it without success. It wasn't a comfortable feeling, and I wanted it to leave. Thankfully it did, but what I felt a short time later completely caught me off guard. A cold feeling pressed gently on my mouth, and air began to rush into me. Then, there was pressure being applied to my chest before the cold returned to my lips.

After this happened a couple of times, I realized what was happening. Someone was using CPR to try to rescue me, just like I had learned in Health class. My panicked mind slowed down a little, knowing that this would work.

At least, I hoped it would…

Suddenly, I had the feeling that I was going to be sick. I felt my whole body jerk before I coughed up the water that I guess had been in my lungs. That would explain why I hadn't been able to breathe… I laid my head back down on whatever I was lying on with my eyes closed, feeling physically weak, as I coughed a little more. The teacher hadn't talked about how painful CPR was. Then again, he probably hadn't experienced it himself…

Then, I felt a cold feeling on my head where the hot one had been before, and I slowly opened my eyes to see what it was. My vision finally cleared, and my heart, beating forcefully in my chest, seemed to flutter when I saw that Jasper was kneeling beside me, his hand resting gently on the top of my head. He smiled when our eyes met.

"Hey, Alice," he muttered with a slight laugh. "Welcome back."

I admit, I still felt fear from when I realized that I had just been on the brink of death, but I also felt relief when I saw that I was still here, alive… with Jasper. That was the greatest feeling in the world. I knew that there were other people gathered around me, but right now, my eyes only held Jasper's perfect face. I saw his golden eyes falter slightly, and I realized that he must have felt the attraction, the _love_ that I felt toward him. But that didn't matter to me right now. All that mattered was that I was here and I was alive with Jasper, who might as well have been my guardian angel, beside me.

To try to express these feelings, I slowly raised my hand and weakly wrapped it around Jasper's free one since it felt as though all of the strength had left my body. After a moment, his hand tightened slightly around mine, and I felt assured that he wasn't going to leave me. That was all that I needed…

I finally allowed my eyes to begin to close, heading toward the welcoming darkness that had been pulling at me. I was _so_ tired… The last thing I saw was Jasper's worried face before they closed completely, smiling slightly when I heard him whisper, "Alice…"

* * *

I slowly opened my eyes when bright sunlight hit them, hissing with surprise when a sharp pain stabbed at my forehead. I groaned as I closed my eyes again, waiting for it to subside…

"I'm sorry, Alice. I can close the blinds if that would help."

My eyes quickly opened when I heard the quiet, gentle voice, and I was surprised to see Jasper sitting in a chair beside me, fully dressed instead of just in a swimsuit, staying out of the rays of the sun. "Jasper…" I whispered hoarsely, my voice cracking since my throat was so dry.

Jasper smiled at me. "Here, have some water," he said, grabbing a pitcher full of ice water and a plastic cup, filling it only about halfway before handing it back to me. "You can have more if you like after I close the blinds to block off that bright light for you."

I sat up a little on the bed I found that I was lying in, leaning back against the pillows a little as I raised the cup to my mouth, drinking all of the water that Jasper had poured for me. Now I knew why he only poured me half a cup. Though refreshing, the water burned my throat as it went down since it was so dry.

I know, it's weird.

Then, I blinked a little as the light suddenly dimmed greatly, and I watched as Jasper moved away from the window and sat back down in the chair beside the bed. "Would you like some more?" he asked, nodding toward the now empty cup I held.

"Yes, please," I answered quietly, handing him the cup. Jasper smiled slightly as he took it and poured me some more water, a little more than the first time, before handing it back to me.

"Thank you." I smiled back at him as I took a couple of slower sips before looking around the room again. "Where am I?"

Jasper sighed. "You seem to have the worst luck, Alice," he said, a smirk playing on his lips. "This is the camp's version of a hospital. Carlisle made sure that you were stable, but he had to go run somewhere, which is why he isn't here right now. Edward, Emmett, and Bella are sleeping out in the other room, and Rosalie's out there as well since she heard what happened. Unfortunately, no one could get _him_ to leave the room."

I followed Jasper's gaze, and for the first time, I noticed Jacob sitting on the floor in the corner of the room, snoring lightly as he continued to sleep. I sighed heavily. Dang. Why couldn't he sleep out in the other room like the others and leave me some time alone with Jasper?

"How are you feeling?" Jasper suddenly asked quietly, misinterpreting my sigh.

Like I'd been through Hell and back- that's how I felt. But, I didn't want to worry him _too_ much, so I decided I wouldn't tell him the full extent of my condition. "Terrible," I muttered in answer. "Drowning is _not_ something that is on my 'fun things to do' list."

Jasper laughed a little at my statement, and I noticed that his eyes were a little more gold than they were yesterday… "Well, hopefully you won't have to go through something like that again," he told me. But then, his playful nature slowly disappeared as he looked at me with an expression I couldn't read. "You don't know… how scared I was when I saw you sink, when Edward told us that you weren't breathing. I should have reacted faster. I should have done something when I realized you were seeing something. You had such a panicked look in your eyes…"

I sighed, reaching forward and wrapping my hand around his cold one as I gave it a slight squeeze. Jasper's downcast expression turned to one of confusion as he looked into my dark eyes, trying to read my emotions, I assumed. "Are you always going to beat yourself up when something almost kills me?" I asked lightly with a smile, hoping to make him feel better. "Jasper, this is the third time you've saved my life. Please, stop being so hard on yourself."

Jasper looked at me for a long moment before slowly raising his other hand and wrapping it gently around our joined ones. "I know it isn't my fault, but I feel as though you're almost getting yourself killed a lot more now that you're close to me."

Had Jasper really just said that I was close to him? We were making progress… But I pushed that thought aside as I laughed a little, tightening my hand around his. "You just haven't known me for my whole life," I told him. I paused for a moment when a strange expression crossed Jasper's face at those words, one that made me think that statement was false even though I knew it wasn't. I had never seen Jasper before I met him this year… had I? "I've always had a knack for getting into near-death experiences, believe me. Hospitals were almost like my second home when I was little.

"But… it was by pure chance that I wasn't in the car when it… when it crashed with… with my parents…" My voice faltered, and it was a true battle to hold back the tears that threatened to rush to my eyes.

Sensing my sudden change in mood, Jasper scooted forward in his seat a little, moving closer to me. "Alice…"

"I'll be fine, Jasper," I muttered. With him as close to me as he was, I knew that I could last telling him this story. "I was at home, sick with a fever, while Edward and Emmett were at school. My parents were going to go to the pharmacy to pick up some medicine, and they wondered if I wanted to go along since I didn't necessarily have to be in bed. It wasn't that high. I said sure, and I went to get changed.

"But then, on my way back down the stairs, I suddenly felt very weak and lightheaded, and I ended up falling down the rest of the steps. I bruised my ankle, so my dad thought that it would be best if I stayed home instead. So, he put me back on the couch with some ice, and after they both told me that they would be home shortly, they left for the pharmacy.

"I waited… probably about forty-five minutes before I started getting worried. The pharmacy wasn't too far away, so it shouldn't have taken them so long to come back home. I was about to try calling my dad's cell or text Emmett when the call came.

"The phone was right next to the couch, so I didn't have to reach far to grab it. I hoped that it was my parents, telling me that they were having trouble finding the right medicine or they were having car trouble or something. Instead, it was an officer from the police station calling to express his sympathies since my parents had both been killed in a car accident. It was a head-on collision, not their fault. I numbly hung up.

"I didn't believe him at first. I mean, he was talking about my _parents_. They _couldn't_ be dead. But after a few minutes of sitting on the couch in denial, I left the house and headed for the school, which was only a few blocks away from the house. I had to tell Edward and Emmett immediately, but it took me a lot longer to reach school than usual due to my limp.

"I found them both outside playing kickball since the two grade-level gym classes had fused for the day, playing against each other. Emmett was up to kick, and as he watched the ball fly into the outfield, he saw me slowly coming in their direction. He immediately began to run toward me, and once Edward realized what was going on, he followed right behind.

"When they reached me, I was completely exhausted and had to lean on them for support. They continued to ask me what was wrong and what I was doing there as more kids slowly began to gather around us, and I just broke down and started sobbing. They both held me tightly, and I was finally able to tell them that our parents had died.

"They both left school early, and Emmett drove us home, where we all sat together on the couch in silence and waited for child services to come and explain what would happen to us. That's how we ended up living with our grandmother in Forks since my brothers didn't want me to spend the rest of my teenage years in an orphanage."

Jasper sighed when I was finished, and he gracefully got up from the chair and sat on the bed beside me in one fluid motion. "I believe that I understand you now," he muttered thoughtfully. "The reason that you are hesitant to be in a relationship with someone is because you are afraid to lose someone else close to you. Still, you are incredibly strong after all that's happened to you."

I looked up at him in shock through moist eyes. How had he known that? I had never even told my own brothers that information. Bella either. How could Jasper possibly have known?

"Get some more sleep, Alice, you need it," Jasper suddenly said, resting his arm on the pillow around me. "Almost drowning must be exhausting."

Sighing since I knew that he was correct, I scooted down on the pillows a little and rested my head on Jasper's cold shoulder. "Thank you," I whispered, shifting a little as I tried to make myself comfortable. I could feel him tense at my closeness, and color rushed to my cheeks when my head ended up resting on Jasper's chest, but my head felt too heavy to move anymore and Jasper didn't seem to overly mind…

"Of course," he replied quietly, absently beginning to stroke my hair in a calming manner- he probably felt my slight anxiousness. "I promise you now, Alice, as your friend, I will never leave you."

A smile appeared on my face as my exhaustion took me, strangely feeling very comfortable so close to Jasper. Before I fell into sleep, however, I was shocked to hear no heartbeat in his chest. I had to be going crazy… But before I could open my eyes to ask him about this, a strong feeling of calm flowed through me, and I was swallowed by darkness.

* * *

The first thing I heard was a series of voices. I was confused by them as I tried to make them out. What they were saying didn't make any sense.

"I don't know if I trust your _son_ to watch over her." That voice wasn't too familiar to me, but I had heard it once before. I recognized it to be the voice of Billy Black, Jacob's grandfather.

"Yeah, he could easily snap and kill her before the tracker even reaches her." That was the sneering voice of Jacob himself. What _tracker_ was he talking about?

Then, I heard the sound of a low growl that almost sounded inhuman, but it was quickly cut off by a soft, gentle tone that was very familiar to me. "My son is perfectly capable of watching over her," Carlisle said firmly. "They are strangely close. He would never hurt her. Besides, I trust him more than your grandson with his… wild emotions."

There was a different growl of anger this time before another warning growl that sounded the same as the first one I had heard started again, just a little more fierce this time. They both began to escalate, and it sounded as though a fight would break out.

"Jasper, stop!"

The sudden sharpness in Carlisle's tone startled me. I had never heard him sound so angry before… Normally, he was so calm and gentle. But, it seemed to have worked because one of the growls, which must have belonged to Jasper, ended abruptly while the other continued softly.

"The plan will remain the same as I first proposed it," Carlisle continued in a quieter, calmer way. "My family and I will stay close to her to make sure that he does not get anywhere near her, and you will have your grandson and his friends continuing to patrol the area to watch for signs of anything strange."

That's when it hit me. I knew what they were now talking about. They were talking about _me_. I cracked one eye open when I heard another angry growl, and I watched as Jacob stepped from Billy's side and moved toward Carlisle. Before he could reach him, however, Jasper stepped in front of his adoptive father in a protective way, giving Jacob a dark glare as he stopped walking. But he still seemed furious…

"I swear, Jasper, if you even come _close_ to harming her of you let _anything_ happen to her, I _will_ tear your head off with my bare hands," Jacob threatened with a hiss.

Jasper did not seem to be affected by his words, however, and a smirk appeared on his face at the threat. "I would love to see you try, mongrel."

Jacob growled again as he crouched offensively, seeming excited to take on the challenge, while Jasper did the same. Why did their actions seem almost… inhuman?

No, I had to stop them. I was just about to sit up and announce that I was awake, to stop Jasper from getting hurt, when someone else stepped up.

"Enough, Jasper," Carlisle muttered, placing his hand on his adopted son's shoulder. After an agonizingly long moment, Jasper straightened up as he looked at Carlisle, taking a step back away from Jacob. Carlisle kept his hand on his shoulder as he pushed Jasper behind him, almost in a restraining way.

"This conversation is over," he said, a note of authority entering his voice again. "I believe what he have to worry about now is her safety, which is something we all want. That is the most important thing now, not the rivalry between us."

"Yes… yes, I suppose you're right," Billy muttered thoughtfully. "I can't believe that I'm agreeing with you, Cullen… But enough is enough for now. Come on, Jacob. We have other things to take care of."

I watched as Billy rolled out of the hospital room immediately, but Jacob remained for a minute more. He threw a longing glance in my direction before giving Jasper another soft, warning growl, finally leaving the room after his grandfather.

Okay, what the hell just happened? I had no idea, nor did I have any time to dwell on it since Jasper and Carlisle turned in my direction and began walking toward me. I closed my eyes tighter as they approached, surprised when I heard Jasper's quiet laugh.

"I know that you're awake, Alice. You can stop pretending whenever you like."

I sighed with defeat as I slowly opened my eyes, seeing that Jasper was sitting down on the bed beside me, and Carlisle was standing next to the bed on my other side. "What just happened?" I didn't mean that to be the first thing I said to them, but I was confused and wanted answers.

Jasper quickly glanced at Carlisle before turning back to me. "Nothing, Alice," he answered quietly, giving me a small smile. "At least, nothing that concerns you."

My eyes narrowed, my sudden anger catching Jasper off guard. "I'm tired of hearing that answer!" I snapped. "I know what you were talking about. I _know_ that someone is after me! Since that's the case, I think I have the right to know what's happening since it's _my_ life hanging in the balance!"

Clearly, I had shocked both of them judging by their expressions. Jasper sighed and looked away from me guiltily while Carlisle slowly reached forward and placed his cold hand on my shoulder in a comforting way. "Alice, whatever gave you that idea?" he asked calmly. "No one ever said that anyone was after you…"

"I just know!" I interrupted him with more impatience than I would have liked, tears of desperation forming in my eyes. "Please, just tell me what's going on… please…"

Carlisle looked over at Jasper, who looked back at him, and some sort of silent message must have passed between them, for Carlisle suddenly cleared his throat and backed away from me. "I have to go find Esme," he said quietly, not meeting my gaze though I tried to meet his. "I'll be around if you need anything. Otherwise, once you're done talking here, you are free to leave, Alice. I can see you're well enough now. Take care." And without another word, he turned and quickly left the room, closing the door behind him.

"Jasper, please. I just want honest answers," I said as soon as Carlisle was gone, trying to be as calm as I could with the tears still burning in my eyes. "What is going on?"

"I could ask you the same thing," Jasper replied, his tone darker, more dangerous, as he looked up at me. "How do you know that someone _may_ be after you?"

Did I really have to tell him this? I sighed, seeing no way out of an explanation if I wanted answers of my own. Why could _I_ never back _him_ into a corner like this? It really wasn't fair… "Do you remember when I told you about that vision I had yester about Edward and Emmett dying?" I didn't wait for an answer before I continued- it would be too difficult otherwise. "Well, they were killed by a man, Jasper, a monster. But they weren't his targets. They died protecting me from him… that creature. _I_ was the target, Jasper, not Emmett, not Edward… _me_.

"And when I almost drowned last night, I had another vision of him. This time, you and I were… together when he attacked, and you died to defend me. But again, _I_ was the one he was targeting, not you. That man I thought I saw outside my cabin window… he's out there, deciding on how to come after me to kill me. But… I'm not afraid for myself. I'm afraid for you… for Emmett and Edward… for anyone who will defend me from him. I…"

"Alice!"

I gasped and abruptly stopped talking when Jasper's strong, cold arms suddenly wrapped around me almost protectively. At that moment, I realized how close to a nervous breakdown I had been, and I dug my face into his shoulder, shaking as tears leaked from my eyes.

"Shh…" Jasper soothed, stroking my hair to try to calm me. "Listen to me very, very carefully, Alice. We will not let anything happen to you. _I_ will not let anything happen to you, I promise you. I will not let him harm you or anyone else. He's not even in the area now, and we will make sure that it stays that way. He will _not_ get near you, I won't allow him to."

Though I wasn't exactly sure who Jasper was talking about, I still felt strangely calmer in his arms. Rubbing my eyes to wipe my tears away, I slowly raised my head to look at Jasper, and I was shocked to see that his face was only inches above me, his perfect lips so close to mine. All I would have to do is lean forward a tiny bit, and… No, Alice. Stop. You can't think like that. You're not dating him. You don't even know if he likes you like that. It would be so totally inappropriate to kiss him, no matter how much you want to…

But surprisingly, Jasper didn't move away as he looked into my dark eyes. I could almost feel his hesitance as he slowly moved forward a little, and I could almost feel the coldness of his lips against mine. I moved forward a little to close the small gap between us since he had technically made the first move, but my lips only grazed his before Jasper moved his head back quickly and looked away, his expression troubled. I sighed and laid my head on his shoulder again since I was still wrapped in his arms. Dang. I had been _so_ close…

"I'm sorry, Alice."

I blinked with surprise when I heard his quiet statement, looking back up at him. "You don't have anything to be sorry for, Jasper," I whispered. Except for backing out of that kiss when it had been so close, that is…

Jasper sighed, not seeming to be convinced. "There are things about me, Alice, that you don't know about- things I hope you never have to find out," he muttered, his golden eyes finally meeting my gaze. "Things that are putting you in terrible danger."

"Let me guess. You're not human, are you?" I asked quietly with a hint of sarcasm.

Actually, I had meant that as a kind of joke, but the uncomfortable look on his face began to make me rethink what I had just said. I really hadn't been onto something, had I? But my curiosity of the situation drove me to ask, "What _are_ you?"

Jasper looked at me for a long moment, his forehead creasing with worry while his eyes faltered, and my eyes widened in disbelief. I didn't feel any fear, just wonder, as Sam's story from the night before came to mind again. It wasn't possible that Jasper was actually something inhuman… was it?

But he provided no further answer as he swiftly released me and stood up off the bed. "Here," Jasper said, reaching down and grabbing a plastic bag that I hadn't seen before that had been on the ground by the bed and placed it beside me. "Bella and Rosalie brought you these while you were sleeping. Get changed. They want us to meet them along with your brothers in the mess hall for breakfast. If we hurry, we can still make it in time."

**A/N**: And… not quite yet, lol. It's a bit too early for Jasper and Alice to get together. Oh, and just a note, I have never been in the same situation as Alice where I've drowned before, so I just took creative license with that. And I really did learn how to do CPR in my Health class… which was two years ago. I just went by what I remember. I'm not a professional by any means! But, yeah. I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Your reviews are much appreciated! And, as always, enjoy the exciting preview!

**Next Chapter**: _Wild Animals_

_But then, my eyes landed on my two stuffed animals that I had brought along, the bat and the wolf, that were still right where had I left them on either side of my pillow. I reached forward and grabbed the black bat, looking at its yellow eyes before I hugged it tightly to me and closed my eyes. And for a moment, I had to wonder…_

_What kind of mess had I gotten myself into now?_

Xxx

(Jasper) _I thought about how I had saved Alice from drowning without even a second thought, how angry I was when Jacob got too close to her, how I had almost let my guard drop around her that morning, how I had felt when I was so close to her that I could have easily kissed her… It all made sense to me now, I just couldn't accept what was happening to me._

_The more I thought about it, the more I realized that I was in love with Alice._

Xxx

_I was in love with Jasper._

_Ever since I had seen my first visions of him, there had always been that special connection I felt toward him no matter how strange it was. And ever since the first time we had talked, the friendship between us had only grown, the feeling I had toward him growing stronger. But I had _never_ expected to use that short, powerful, four-letter word to describe how I felt toward Jasper…_

Xxx

_"Are you okay, Ed?" I couldn't help but feel that something was off about him…_

_Edward looked back at me and nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine, Alice," he answered with some confusion. "Why do you ask?"_

Xxx

_Once she calmed enough to speak, Jessica looked up at Mike fearfully. "There are a bunch of wild animals in the woods," she muttered, clinging to him tightly._

Xxx

_He looked back down at me, putting his arm around my shoulders and pulling me to his side. "You're going to have to stay very close to me and try not to say anything," Jasper told me sternly._


	14. Chapter 13: Wild Animals

**Disclaimer**: Nope! Not mine! I'm just borrowing them for this story, and they will hopefully returned in one piece to their rightful owner.

**A/N**: Hey! Sorry for the long wait, guys. I've had so much homework lately, it's insane. Plus an English paper, but I'm way ahead in that now, so it's no big deal. Thank you for all of your reviews! I'm gonna' keep this short and sweet since I'm sure you want to read the next chapter, lol. Oh, the song I used in this chapter is "On My Own" from the musical, _Les Miserables_, which is my favorite. So, enjoy!

_Chapter 13- Wild Animals_

I changed relatively quickly while Jasper waited out in the other room for me. But as I pulled my black and red t-shirt over my head after putting my shorts on, I couldn't help but wonder why my question to him about not being human bothered him so much. I knew that it wasn't possible, but what Sam had told in his story wouldn't leave my mind. I just couldn't forget how well Jasper fit the vampires that he had described…

When I was finished, I grabbed the plastic bag with my swimsuit in it and left the room, seeing that Jasper was still waiting for me, and I could tell that there was definitely something on his mind. He was standing in the shadows that the doorway provided, staying out of the sunlight as he gazed out the window. I couldn't help but wonder why he always seemed to be staying in the dark, but before I could ponder this any longer, he turned and smiled at me when I approached.

"Ready?" he asked.

I nodded, and he opened the door of the camp's "hospital" and walked outside, immediately stepping into the shadows again. I followed after him curiously after I closed the door behind me, walking a couple of steps behind him. I personally didn't see any problem with the sun, but to each their own, I guess.

"We'll drop your bag off at your cabin before heading to the mess hall, Jasper suddenly said, glancing back at me as he paused and waited for me to catch up. "That way, you won't have to carry it around with you."

"Okay. Thank you again, Jasper. For everything." I watched as Jasper gave me a small smile but quickly looked away, not saying anything else as we walked. I sighed as I fell into place beside him, wanting to talk to him but not knowing what to say. After my joking question of him not being human and seeing his response, I couldn't help but feel that yes, something was very different about Jasper, more so than I originally thought. I wanted to know more.

However, neither one of us said another word until we reached the fork in the path that separated the boy and the girl cabins. "You go on ahead and drop your bag off. I'll wait here for you," Jasper muttered, still not meeting my gaze.

"All right. I'll be back shortly." I walked away from him down that path that led to the girl cabins, glancing back at him one last time before he disappeared from sight. I tried to walk quickly so I wouldn't keep him waiting for too long. It was nice of him to be waiting for me at all. I barely noticed the trees pass by me as I hurried along the path, anxious for the cabins to come into sight. I had the strange feeling that someone was there besides Jasper, watching my every step from the shadows of the trees…

I counted the cabins as they came into sight, running up to the door of mine. I checked under the mat since Rosalie said that she would leave an extra copy of the key there, and I unlocked the door and entered. Once inside, I immediately climbed up onto the top bunk that I had claimed and put my swimsuit back into one of my bags with some other things. I then sighed as I looked down at my pillow. Maybe I could actually spend the night here tonight with Bella and Rosalie instead of being in the hospital. Maybe then I could actually enjoy the camp instead of being in some sort of trouble…

But then, my eyes landed on my two stuffed animals that I had brought along, the bat and the wolf, that were still right where I had left them on either side of my pillow. I reached forward and grabbed the black bat, looking at its yellow eyes quickly before I hugged it tightly to me and closed my eyes. And for one moment, I had to wonder…

What kind of mess had I gotten myself into now?

* * *

_Jasper POV_

_"I can't believe that I let my guard down…"_

I stood at the fork in the path, watching as Alice glanced back at me before she disappeared from sight. The need to watch out for her, to protect her, was so strong that I didn't understand it. I had never felt this way before. I had never wanted to be this close to someone before. I didn't understand what was happening to me. Why should a human girl, one that I had known before, ever matter to me, one of the most feared hunters, one of the most feared _predators_ that exist in our world?

I thought about how I had saved Alice from drowning without even a second thought, how angry I was when Jacob got too close to her, how I had almost let my guard drop around her this morning, how I had felt when I was so close to her that I could have easily kissed her… It all made sense to me now, I just couldn't accept what was happening to me.

The more I thought about it, the more I realized that I was in love with Alice.

Damn it! No, I couldn't allow myself to feel that way toward her. I couldn't allow her to get too close to me. It didn't matter what Carlisle had told Billy this morning, we both knew the frightening truth. I could easily kill Alice if she was too close to me… if I was weak enough. I couldn't bring myself to love her, to act on those impulses. I was too dangerous, there were too many risks. I couldn't do that to her, or to myself. I wouldn't be able to live with the fact that _I_ had been the one to end her life if anything should happen. I couldn't…

I sighed, running my hand through my hair. I realized that I had let the feeling grow far too long… for both of us. I knew that all I would have to do is ask, and she would be mine. It would be that simple… Maybe… just _maybe_ things could work out fine. Whenever I was around Alice, I felt as though I had more control over my bloodlust. The monster I was seemed to be tamed. Maybe things could work…

She was much more beautiful now than last time I had seen her…

No. I was too much of a danger to her. I was a predator, and she was the prey. It would be too risky if I allowed these feelings to take over me. If my emotions were to run too high, I could hurt, maybe kill, her. If I was so close to her that I could bite her…

I had to stop this now, to end it before something happened that I would regret. I needed to stop these feelings from growing any more… to protect Alice.

I would have to speak with Carlisle.

* * *

_Alice POV_

_"On my own_

_Pretending he's beside me_

_All alone_

_I walk with him till morning_

_Without him_

_I feel his arms around me_

_And when I lose my way, I close my eyes_

_And he has found me…"_

I listened to my iPod as I straightened up my bags a little, singing quietly along to a song from one of my favorite musicals. I figured this wouldn't take to long to do since it was something that needed to be done. Pretty soon, I would be able to meet back up with Jasper and head to the mess hall for breakfast with Edward, Emmett, Bella, and Rosalie. I was actually pretty hungry.

"… _But still I say, there's a way for us._

_I love him…"_

Suddenly, I gasped, pausing the song and ripping the earphones off before dropping my iPod on the bed. As I stared at the small, light blue device with wide eyes, I wondered why this particular song was affecting me so greatly so suddenly. I had heard it many times before, either on a CD or during a live performance, and it had never had this kind of impact on me before. How come now, so suddenly…?

That was the moment when the unquestionable truth crashed down around me.

I was in love with Jasper.

Ever since I had seen my first visions of him, there had always been that special connection I felt toward him, no matter how strange it was. And ever since the first time we had talked, the friendship between us had only grown, the feeling I had toward him growing stronger. But I had _never_ expected to ever use that short, powerful, four-letter word to describe how I felt toward Jasper…

But could I really use any other word to describe the feeling? I couldn't think of any. At that moment, I had to just accept the undeniable truth that I loved Jasper Hale. There was no possible way around it…

I slowly wrapped the earphone cord around my iPod, gently tucking it away in one of my bags and zipped it closed. I sighed, groaning as I put my head in my hands. Wasn't I supposed to feel _elated_ when I was in love? That's what my mother had always told me anyway… So… why wasn't I?

Then, it came to me. I was afraid to get into a relationship because I didn't want to lose anyone else close to me, just as Jasper had said. But hadn't he also said that he would never leave me? Then again, he had said that he would never leave me as a _friend_. There was a difference… And what if he didn't love me too? I had always had a slight fear of rejection…

Ugh, I give up. I knew that I loved Jasper probably more than he loved me, and there was no way that I could convince myself otherwise.

I would just have to suffer in silence.

* * *

The mess hall was crowded by the time Jasper and I reached it, and the majority of students had already grabbed their breakfasts and were sitting at the preferred tables. I moved through the line with Jasper beside me, getting a ham and cheese omelette, bacon, a piece of toast with strawberry jelly, and orange juice. My friend looked at the drink with disgust, but I just laughed and promised to keep it away from him this time.

"Don't worry, I won't make you drink it again," I muttered with a smile as we headed for the table that I saw my brothers, Rosalie, and Bella sitting at.

Jasper slowly leaned down close to my ear while we walked. "Thank you," he whispered, and we exchanged broad smiles as we approached the table.

"Hey, the walking dead had graced us with her presence," Emmett said teasingly as Jasper and I sat across from him and Rosalie. Edward was on my other side, and he gave our oldest brother a dark look at his joke.

"Emmett," he scolded before turning to me, placing his arm around my and pulling me close to him in a one-armed hug. "Seriously, kid, we were very worried about you. We thought, for a short time, that we were going to lose another member of our family. That is, until Jasper gave you CPR…"

I smiled as I turned to Edward and gave him a tight hug, relieved that his tone wasn't as condescending as usual when he spoke about Jasper. It was such a relief… "Thanks, Ed, but you won't be losing me that easily." I noticed Jasper smile out of the corner of my eye.

But then, I frowned as I let go of Edward and looked at him with concern. "Are you okay, Ed?" I couldn't help but feel that something was off about him…

Edward looked back at me and nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine, Alice," he answered with some confusion. "Why do you ask?"

"I don't know…" I shrugged, turning back to my breakfast. I picked up my plastic fork and began to eat my omelette, and I glanced down at my free hand when I felt another cold one wrap around mine. I looked at Jasper's pale hand and then up into his face. I could tell that he had felt my worry about Edward.

But before he could ask me what was wrong, the door to the mess hall crashed open, and I quickly turned to watch as Jessica and Angela ran in, tears shining in their eyes. Jasper's hand tightened around mine, and I could tell that he was as anxious as I was.

Then, I watched as Eric, who was Angela's boyfriend, and Mike Newton jumped up and rushed over to them, Eric hugging Angela while Mike did the same to Jessica. It seemed as though they had finally gotten together… "What happened, Jess?" Mike asked anxiously, holding her close to him.

Once she calmed down enough to speak, Jessica looked up at Mike fearfully. "There are a bunch of wild animals in the woods," she muttered, clinging to him tightly. "Angela and I were walking down a nature trail when we saw them. I swear that one looked almost… _human_, but the rest were wolves… _huge_ wolves… I'm surprised we outran them…"

At her panicked words, Rosalie and Bella immediately jumped to their feet and began running toward the mess hall door. Edward and Emmett looked dumfounded while the younger of them called after Bella, and I gasped when Jasper also stood up beside me.

"I'll be right back," he whispered to me, releasing my hand as he began to follow his sisters to the door. "Stay here. I won't be long."

But unlike my brothers, I would _not_ let him get away so easily since I had an idea of what this was about. I jumped up and rushed after him, ignoring my brothers confused shouts, grabbing Jasper's arm just as he reached the door. He looked back down at me with surprise. "Alice…"

"No, Jasper. Let me go with," I said. Then, I dropped my voice so that it was only a whisper. "If this has something to do with that guy that's after me, I think I have the right to know about this."

Jasper seemed to be having some sort of internal struggle as he glanced outside, but then he sighed with defeat when his gaze traveled back to me. "All right, fine," he muttered, though I could tell that it was obviously against his better judgment, as he pulled me out of the mess hall with him. "You just have to promise me one thing."

I looked up at hi, confused, when we stopped in the shade of the building. "What?"

A small smirk appeared on Jasper's perfect face at my question. "You have to promise me that you'll keep your eyes closed."

Before I could ask what he meant by that, Jasper suddenly grabbed my arm and pulled me onto his back. I shrieked with surprised and wrapped my legs around his waist and my arms around his neck to keep myself from falling, burying my face into his back. "Ready?" he asked me, and I could hear the smile in his voice. I'm _so_ glad I amused him…

"As ready as I'll ever be…" I muttered, not raising my eyes to look at him as I kept my eyes tightly shut. "And don't worry. If you do something like that again that will catch me off guard, my eyes will automatically stay shut."

Jasper laughed a little, wrapping one of his arms around my back to hold me steady, I assumed. "All right, then. Just hold on," he cautioned.

"You don't have to-!" My sentence ended in another scream when he suddenly took off running. Judging by the wind on my exposed arms, it felt as though we were going at least sixty miles an hour. But I knew that was impossible. No one could run that fast. I wanted to open my eyes to see where we were and how fast we were actually going, but I didn't because I had promised Jasper that I wouldn't. Plus, I was afraid to know what I would see if I opened them…

Suddenly, after a short time, we came to a complete stop, but my arms tightened around Jasper's neck when I felt dizzy. I wasn't sure if I trusted my legs quite yet… But why was _I_ the one out of breath when _Jasper_ was the one who had been running? It didn't make any sense to me…

"Oh, good. I'm glad you got Carlisle and Esme." That was Jasper's quiet, gentle voice.

"We thought it would be the best idea." That was Rosalie. But why did she sound so angry, so accusing? "I just don't see why you had to bring _her_ with you." I knew that she was talking about me. But why did Rosalie seem so angry with me so suddenly? We had always been good friends…

"She has all the right to be here." It felt good to hear Jasper defend me. "This involves her. She should know what's happening."

"Jasper has a point, Rosalie." That was Esme, always so sweet. I'm glad she was on my side also, but she _did _have a sense of unease in her tone, which made me nervous.

"Well, if you're sure…" Why did Bella also sound so unsure, so hesitant? What was going on?

Then, I jumped slightly when I heard Jasper's quiet laugh in my ear, and I shivered slightly when I felt his cold breath on my cheek. "You can open your eyes now."

I slowly raised my head and opened my eyes since he said I could, and I gasped as I looked around me. Jasper and I were standing in a circular clearing facing Rosalie, Bella, Carlisle, and Esme, surrounded by dense trees that blocked out the sunlight. We must have been deep in the forest, but how had we gotten here so fast?

I then slowly unwound my legs from around Jasper's waist and my arms from his neck as I attempted to climb down from his back. But as soon as my feet hit the soft ground, I began to stumble a little from the vertigo of moving faster than I was used to, and I could see the grass coming up on me quickly.

But a pair of strong arms caught me before I could fall too far, and I looked up into Jasper's face as he slowly helped me up so I was standing straight again. "You okay?" he asked with a slightly laugh, seeming to be amused.

"Yeah," I answered after a moment, making sure that I wasn't dizzy anymore. "I'm good. Thanks."

Jasper smiled, and his icy hands left my arms once he was sure that I was steady. Then, his golden eyes traveled to his adoptive father. "How long do we have?"

"Not long, I'm afraid," Carlisle told him heavily, checking his watch as he wound his arm around Esme's waist and pulled her close to him. "They'll be meeting us here in a few minutes."

"All right. I can hear them coming now…" Jasper did _not_ look happy.

I watched as Bella took a couple of steps closer to Rosalie, and then together, they moved closer to Carlisle and Esme. "What's going on?" I whispered as I looked up at Jasper, feeling very uneasy now.

He looked back down at me, putting his arm around my shoulders and pulling me to his side. "You're going to have to stay very close to me and try not to say anything," he told me sternly. "All right?"

Color rushed to my cheeks at his suddenly closeness. I was okay with that. "Uh… yeah, okay," I mumbled. "I-!" But my statement ended in a scream as I watched a tall, dark, animal-like figure step out of the trees behind where the rest of Jasper's family was standing. It was the largest wolf that I had ever seen in my life, its chest about as tall as Carlisle, with razor-sharp teeth and dark, piercing eyes. I whimpered with fear and wrapped my arms around Jasper's waist tightly since I could feel the animal's eyes on me…

"Come with me," Jasper whispered, pulling me along with him as we walked toward the center of the clearing along with the rest of the Cullens, though I didn't understand why Jasper and I were moving _closer_ to the creature. "This is why you shouldn't have come…"

Once we stopped when we were standing with Carlisle, I watched with mounting fear as another wolf stepped out of the trees not too far from the first, and then another, then another. Two more came from the other side of the clearing, and then one more from behind Jasper and I. My face completely drained of color as I looked around at all of the huge wolves.

We were surrounded.

**A/N**: All right, that's it for this one! I'm sorry it's a bit shorter, but the next one will be longer, I promise. It's a bit of a cliffie too… And there is a reason that Jasper feels so strongly toward Alice. Anyone figure it out yet? And they both know how they feel, but how will it go when those feelings are revealed? I don't know... Well, I do, but you'll have to find out in the next two chapters! Thanks for reading! Your reviews are much appreciated! Oh, and is anyone else annoyed by the fact that the word "omelette" is considered wrong in Microsoft Word? Lol, anyway, enjoy the preview!

**Next Chapter**: _"She's Not One of Us"_

"Surprising_?!" I cut him off as my voice rose, trying to break out of Jasper's hold to move away from Sam. "That doesn't nearly come close! What the hell are you?!"  
_

"_Shh…" Jasper wound his other arm around me as well, holding me closer to him. "Alice, please calm down. They are not going to harm you."_

Xxx

"_He seems to be circling the campsite, scouting the area to see the easiest way to get to _her_." His dark eyes landed on me._

Xxx

_But instead of saying anything, Jacob walked forward so that he was standing directly in front of me and there was hardly any space between us. I tried to back away, but before I could, one of his strong arms wrapped around my back and kept me in place. I looked up at him anxiously as he placed his other hand beneath my chin and tilted my head upward, watching as he slowly leaned down toward me._

Xxx

_A sly smile spread across my face when I interpreted his answer. "You're not happy about that, are you?"_

_Jasper looked back at me, a small smirk on his face. "Am I that obvious?"_

Xxx

_"Carlisle, this is insane! Do you realize how much he's endangering her, how much he's endangering us? What if he kills her? He'll bring the wolves down on us!"_

Xxx

_"Face it, Carlisle, we're the most dangerous creatures on this earth. We're demons, the damned- whichever you prefer. I may love Alice, but I won't succumb and allow her to suffer with me."_

Xxx

_"Alice…" Jasper muttered, taking a cautious step toward me._

_But I shook my head as tears formed in my eyes, and I scooted away from him. "No… no! Stay away from me!" I cried. "Just leave me alone! All of you!"_


	15. Chapter 14: She's Not One of Us

**Disclaimer**: Nope, the characters aren't mine. Just the story.

**A/N**: Hey! Thanks for the reviews, guys! Since I'm not sure when the next time I'll be able to update is, I thought I would give you another chapter today. This week is most likely going to be busy, so I'll update this one too. I hope you like this chapter!

_Chapter 14- "She's Not One of Us"_

Now I knew the true feeling of being trapped as I looked at all of the larger-than-life wolves surrounding us. They were all snarling menacingly as they glared down on us threateningly, and I couldn't help but feel as though they were trying to decide which one of us would make the best breakfast item. And all of their eyes seemed to be trained on me… At my anxiousness, Jasper tightened his hold around me. I placed my head on his chest, grateful for his shielding arm.

"Peace," Carlisle said with a raise of his hand, facing a wolf that seemed to be taller than the others and had the presence of being the leader of the pack. Why was he talking to them? It's not like they could understand what he was saying… "This meeting will go the same- tell us what you have seen. She is merely with us because this is something that directly involves her. She has the right to know."

The wolf that he had been talking to bowed its head, seeming to be considering Carlisle's words as though he _could_ understand them before turning and disappearing into the trees. I watched with confusion, wondering what was happening. Carlisle had mentioned something about a meeting. Didn't that mean that they were supposed to _talk_?

But why would they be talking to a group of wolves that couldn't understand what was being said?

Jasper's mouth was suddenly close to my ear again, and I stiffened nervously. "What is about to happen is completely confidential," he whispered to me so quietly that I could barely hear him. "You cannot tell _anyone_ what you are about to see."

"Tell them what?" I could tell that this was the part that Jasper was dreading. "That there are giant wolves living in the forest?"

"I think everyone knows that now, Alice," Jasper muttered, probably thinking about Jessica and Angela. "But I'm being serious. _No_ one can know about this."

"Okay, Jasper. You can count on me," I promised. I didn't understand what was happening, but I wouldn't tell anyone.

Jasper smiled slightly as he looked down at me, and then he raised his head to meet his adoptive father's intense gaze. "Carlisle."

Carlisle nodded before turning to look at the spot in the surrounding trees where the wolf had disappeared into. "All right, Sam," he announced. "You can come back now."

So now the wolves had names too? Just how close was Carlisle to these creatures?

But then, my eyes widened with shock when I saw that it was not the wolf that came back into the clearing. Instead, it was a boy that had darker-toned skin and black hair that fell a little past his shoulders, wearing nothing other than a pair of torn and faded jean shorts. I gasped when I recognized him to be the same one who had told the story about the wolves of their tribe and the vampires…

"Sam?" I whispered, shaking my head with confusion and disbelief.

He smiled at me and nodded. "Yes. Hello, Alice," he said politely. "I know that this must be surprising for you, but-!"

"_Surprising_?!" I cut him off as my voice rose, trying to break out of Jasper's hold to move away from Sam. "That doesn't nearly come close! What the hell are you?!"

"Shh…" Jasper wound his other arm around me as well, holding me close to him. "Alice, please calm down. They are not going to harm you."

I looked up at him, my fear finally starting to slip away as his golden eyes stared into mine. Everyone else disappeared around me, and I only saw Jasper. It didn't even matter to me that Sam was some sort of… _werewolf_ or something. I knew by looking into Jasper's eyes that he was going to protect me…

But I couldn't help but wonder… if the part of Sam's story about the wolves was true, what about the vampire part?

Suddenly, I gasped when a wolf with light brown fur moved his head close to me, and I couldn't help but scream. Everything happened so fast that it was a blur to me. Jasper's arms tightened around me as he pulled my head down and held it against his chest, and Carlisle, Esme, Bella, and Rosalie were on both sides of us in a second, all crouched in front of this massive wolf while the other creatures growled threateningly at Jasper and his family. I closed my eyes tightly and held my breath as the brown wolf moved his head close to me again, sniffing me once. Then, he used his large tongue to lick me in the face before moving away.

"Eww…" I moaned, my face, neck, and hair now covered in wolf slobber.

Everyone around me seemed to relax, and Jasper used the sleeve of the light jacket he was wearing to dry me off. I looked up at him with a small smile, grateful for his help though I felt sorry for his jacket. "Thank you, Jasper."

He smiled back down at me. "It's not a problem," Jasper replied softly. "You may want to take a shower when we get back, though."

"Oh, don't worry. I will." But as I looked back up at the large, light brown wolf that had licked me, I couldn't get past the feeling that the creature was familiar to me somehow. It seemed _so_ happy to see me… Then, my eyes widened in recognition. If the first wolf had been Sam…

"So, Sam, what have you seen?"

Carlisle's voice brought me back to what was happening around me, and I turned back to the conversation. Jasper tightened his arm around me, and I could tell that he was concerned about what he was going to hear regarding my safety.

"We saw the tracker in the woods not too far from here, and it took a couple of us to keep him away from two human girls walking along a nature trail," Sam answered, his tone grave. I knew that he was talking about Jessica and Angela. "He seems to be circling the campsite, scouting the area to see the easiest way to get to _her_." His dark eyes landed on me.

I looked up at Jasper, startled, as he held me even closer to him and snarled at Sam, the sound almost inhuman. Esme came closer to me as well, placing her hand on my back while Bella grabbed onto my arm and Rosalie stepped toward Jasper in a defensive position. "I can guarantee you that we won't let him get close to her," Carlisle told him, placing his cold hand on top of my head away from the wolf slobber. "One of us will be with her at all times. My daughters share a cabin with her, and my son spends a lot of time with her. I am also ready to do anything if needed, and my wife is always walking around the grounds since she's a chaperone. And if you continue to patrol these woods, he won't get through."

Sam nodded, seeming to be somewhat pleased with what Carlisle said. "It is clear that you all care about her," he muttered, almost thoughtfully. "Maybe… maybe I was wrong about you, Cullen. But nevertheless, the tracker is now heading east. We were able to drive him away. I don't think he expected to see us."

I sighed from Jasper's arms, and he and the rest of his family looked down at me curiously. "I have a question," I said, my eyes on Sam.

He looked back at me. "Yes, Alice? What is it?"

"You keep mentioning someone you call 'the tracker,'" I told him. "Who is he?"

Sam looked hesitant as his eyes flickered to Carlisle, but before he could say anything, the light brown wolf behind me nudged me in the back almost affectionately before giving Jasper a warning growl. I turned to look at him to the best of my ability, giving him an annoyed glare. "Stop it, Jake!"

The wolf looked down at me with wide eyes as he whined with surprise, and the Cullens around me tensed again while Sam looked at the wolf behind me darkly. "Be careful, Jacob," he warned strictly. "Keep your emotions in check."

Jacob whined at him before turning and disappearing into the trees. He came back a moment later, wearing nothing but a pair of ripped, black shorts. "Don't worry, Sam. I got it," he said before turning to me and giving me a smile. "Hey. Do you think I could talk to you for a minute while they have their little meeting, Ali?"

I looked back at him, feeling hesitant. I could tell that my friends didn't like the idea by the way they gathered around me protectively, but I didn't see the harm in just talking to him. "Let me go, guys, I'll be fine," I told them. "It'll only be for a minute, and then I'll be back, I swear." My comment was basically directed toward Jacob so he knew not to keep me too long.

Jasper wasn't happy at all. "Alice, I don't know about this," he whispered to me. "I don't really feel comfortable with you doing this…"

I turned to look at him, giving him a smile as I gave him a quick hug. "I'll be fine," I repeated so that I could assure him. "You guys are close by, I'm sure we won't be too far away. Besides, he may be a giant wolf… thing, but I don't think he'll hurt me." In truth, I wasn't happy about leaving Jasper either, especially after the realization I had made back at the cabin…

After another moment, Jasper sighed and slowly released me. "Just be careful," he told me, his hand lingering around mine for a minute. "Call if you need us."

"I will." Jasper hesitantly released my hand, and I took a deep breath as I walked through the tall grass over to Jacob. "All right, what do you want to talk about, Jake?"

"Come with me." Jacob took my hand, and the heat from it felt uncomfortable. I much preferred Jasper's cold hand. He led me a little ways into the trees, stopping when the Cullens and the rest of the wolves were out of sight. He then turned to look back at me as he let go of my hand. "You… you're really not afraid of me?" he asked unsurely.

"No," I shook my head. I truly wasn't. I thought for sure that I would be, but I really wasn't… "It's hard to believe and understand, but I'm not afraid of you."

"Well, I guess I'm not too surprised with the friends you keep," Jacob muttered with a shrug.

I felt a twinge of anger at his statement. "What is that supposed to mean?" I demanded harshly.

Jacob looked at me with surprise. "I can't believe Jasper still hasn't told you," he said, shaking his head. "With the way he was holding you so protectively and how the rest of the Cullens were hovering around you, I would have sworn you knew…"

"_What_ are you talking about?" I asked with frustration, crossing my arms in front of me. "What hasn't Jasper told me?"

But I didn't get an answer to my question. Instead, Jacob took a small step toward me, and I swallowed nervously as I looked up at him. My heart began to race, and I wondered why this was happening to me…

"I realize now that _maybe _I was warning you about the wrong people," he admitted quietly, not meeting my gaze. "The Cullens seem to be very protective of you, but I still don't know if I trust Jasper around you. He's the most dangerous out of all of them…"

"No… no he isn't," I interrupted him, immediately coming to Jasper's defense. "He's been nothing but a good friend to me, Jake. And don't think that you saying something like that will get me to stay away from him because I… I think I _love_ him, Jake…"

Jacob cursed quietly under his breath at my words, and he raised his eyes to meet mine. "That's what I was afraid of. Did you ever think that it was all just a lure, Ali? Do you think that he would _really_ love you in return? Do you think that he would love you the way you deserve… the way that someone else could?"

I felt suspicion rise within me at his statement. "Jake… what are you getting at?" I asked quietly.

But instead of saying anything, Jacob walked forward so that he was standing directly in front of me and there was hardly any space between us. I tried to back away, but before I could, one of his strong arms wrapped around my back and kept me in place. I looked up at him anxiously as he placed his other hand beneath my chin and tilted my head upward, watching as he slowly leaned down toward me. Then, I gasped slightly as his hot lips skimmed against mine, but I turned away from him at the last second so that the kiss was planted on my cheek instead.

"Jake, stop it!"

Suddenly, there was a rush of cool wind, and I was torn from Jacob's arms and suddenly standing behind Jasper, who was tense angrily as he stared Jacob down. "I had a feeling that you were going to try something funny, Jacob, especially after I realized that you had imprinted on Alice," he muttered threateningly, his tone dark. Jacob had _imprinted_ on me? What did _that_ mean?

"It's not my fault that I fell so attracted to her, Jasper," Jacob protested harshly in his defense. "It's not my fault that I can't stay away from her! You have to understand that imprinting is something that's out of my control."

After a moment, I realized that I was shaking with anxiety. Both Jasper and Jacob were filled with so much anger that I swore they were going to start fighting at any moment, and that was the last thing I wanted. I glanced after my shoulder then, seeing that Carlisle, Esme, Rosalie, Bella, and Sam had come to stand behind me. Carlisle placed his arm around my shoulders and pulled me to his side while Sam shook his head with disappointment at Jacob.

"I think it would be in your best interest to stay away from her, Jacob," Jasper hissed menacingly. "Otherwise, there will be consequences. We're done here."

"Jasper…" Carlisle attempted to start, seeming concerned about his son and the obviously already fragile alliance between the family and the teenagers from the La Push reservation.

But Jasper ignored his words as he turned away from Jacob and walked directly over to me. He placed his hand on my cheek for a second, rubbing his thumb over the spot where Jacob had kissed me, before gently grabbing my arm and pulling me onto his back. Once again, I wrapped my arms around his neck and my legs around his waist to steady myself.

"Close your eyes," Jasper reminded me quietly.

"Don't worry," I muttered nervously. I laid my head on his shoulder, but I glanced at Jacob one last time before I closed my eyes, and Jasper took off running through the forest.

* * *

A couple of weeks passed by with no sight or word from Jacob. I wasn't exactly disappointed with his strange disappearance, but I was wondering where he had gone to. Sam and the rest of the teenage wolves were still round the camp, but Jacob was nowhere to be seen.

Jasper seemed to be a little more at ease now that Jacob wasn't hovering around me constantly. Whenever we spent time together, either alone or with friends while we participated in the camp activities, he would smile and laugh more, which I liked much better than when he was quiet and brooding. The only one who didn't seem to be pleased with the fact that our friendship was strengthening was Rosalie, who appeared angry whenever she saw Jasper and I together.

But Rosalie aside, I loved the time that Jasper devoted to me. He was growing more and more open every day as I gained his trust, and I had a feeling that I was getting to know him almost as well as his sisters and adoptive parents did, which gave me a really good feeling.

But I still had some questions for him, most of which I knew he wouldn't answer. However, I still knew that I had to try. It was on a day that Sam took a group of the kids from school on a hiking trip through the woods when I decided to ask him a couple of questions about Jacob.

"Jasper, what's imprinting?"

He looked down at me, his expression hesitant as he paused for a minute in the shade of the trees. I stopped beside him, allowing some kids behind us to get ahead so that we were the last in the group. "So, you caught me say that, huh?" Jasper said as we continued walking through the shadows. When I nodded, he sighed. "Imprinting is a characteristic of the wolves where they form an incredibly strong bond to one person. Once this bond is made, they can't stay away from them, but this bond doesn't necessarily have to be love. Typically, the attachment is made to fit the situation. For instance, Sam, who's almost twenty now, imprinted on his fiancée, Emily, when he was fifteen. They dated ever since then. But Quil, one of the other La Push wolves, imprinted on a girl named Claire three years ago. The only thing is, she was an infant at the time. For those three years, Quil has hated leaving her, but he's there for her in the way that an older brother would be. Of course, he hopes that their relationship will change in the future, but that remains to be seen."

I looked away from him as I tried to process all of this information in my own mind. "So, that's what Jacob did to me?" I asked cautiously.

"Yes," Jasper answered stiffly. "The romantic aspect of it, anyhow."

A sly smile spread across my race when I interpreted his answer. "You're not happy about that, are you?"

Jasper looked back at me, a small smirk on his face. "Am I that obvious?"

I laughed a little. "Yeah, sorry," I told him.

"No, I don't like that he has this… obsession with you," Jasper told me with a small laugh, trying to push it off casually. But I could tell that there was something deeper to his answer. "It's just… never mind, it's hard to explain."

So, understanding the whole imprinting thing now, I could see that Jacob really _was_ jealous of all the attention that Jasper was giving me. But did the fact that Jasper didn't like that Jacob had this certain obsession with me mean that _he_ was also jealous? I didn't know, but I guess I would find out soon.

I was just about to joke around with him about this when my sight suddenly vanished, replaced with an image of Carlisle standing over a bed in the camp's hospital with Bella standing across from him. He sadly looked down on whoever was lying in it, and when my vision followed him, I gasped when I saw that it was Edward. His eyes were closed and his face was extremely pale, and it looked like he was hardly breathing. Bella nervously looked at Carlisle as she grabbed my brother's hand, and Carlisle gave her an encouraging nod before he leaned down close to Edward.

Suddenly, his teeth dug into his neck, and Edward's eyes shot open as a cry of pain escaped from him…

"Alice. Alice!"

I heard Jasper's voice pierce the haze from my vision, and I allowed it to pull me back to reality while I also felt his cold hands on my shoulders, shaking me. "I'm back," I muttered once my mind cleared. "Thanks, Jasper…"

"What did you see, Alice?" Jasper asked, his golden eyes intent.

For a moment, I considered my answer as I looked back into his eyes. Could I really tell him the part about Carlisle? "I… I saw Edward in the camp hospital," I answered quietly, unsurely. "He… he was dying, and Bella and Carlisle were there. It was awful, Jasper…"

But for some unknown reason, the sudden spark in Jasper's eyes gave me the feeling that he knew about the part that I had purposely left out. Was that even possible? I wasn't sure…

"You look thirsty," Jasper suddenly commented, taking my arm as he began pulling me back down the trail in the opposite direction of where everyone else was walking back toward the camp. "I'll drop you off by the mess hall, and you can get something to drink and wait for me there, all right? I have to talk to Carlisle, but I'll meet back up with you when I'm done."

I didn't have any time to protest as we emerged from the trees at the parking lot. Jasper led me across it in a hurry and stopped at the doors of the mess hall. He gave me a small smile as he squeezed my hand, not saying another word before he left my side and disappeared from sight.

* * *

Jasper had been right- I was pretty thirsty. But I quickly finished the glass of strawberry milk I had made, and I was bored sitting by myself with only the lunch ladies busily working in the kitchen to keep me company. I knew that Jasper had told me that he was going to meet back up with me when he was done talking to Carlisle, but why couldn't I find him and save him a trip? He was taking a long time… Making up my mind, I got up from the table I was sitting at and left the mess hall.

But that left me with the problem of where to find Jasper. It didn't take me long to figure out where a good place to start would be, though, since where else would Carlisle be but the camp hospital? So, going by my instinct, I went behind the mess hall building and began walking down the narrow path that would lead me to Carlisle's work place.

It was nearly silent as I walked down the path, and I hurried my pace since I was alone and feeling uncomfortable. But right before I rounded the corner, I heard more footsteps from ahead of me, and I screamed when I almost bumped into none other than Mike Newton as he came around the corner.

"Oh. Hey, Alice," Mike greeted cheerfully with a smile.

"Hi, Mike," I replied once my breathing had calmed down and my heart began to slow to its normal rate. Then, I frowned when I saw a cast on his left hand. "What happened?"

"Oh, this?" Mike raised his injured arm for emphasis. "I sprained my wrist on the hike." But then, his lighthearted nature fell. "Carlisle wrapped it up for me, but I would wait to go see him now if the injury isn't too serious."

My eyes narrowed. "Why?" I asked.

Mike dropped his voice as he leaned forward a little, almost afraid that we would be overheard. "His wife and children are there," he answered in nearly a whisper. "Normally, that wouldn't be a big deal, but they all seem almost… angry. You know?"

I nodded, but a feeling of uneasiness settled within me. "Yeah, but I'm practically a member of the family," I told him with a smile. "I think I'll take my chances."

"Well, suit yourself then," Mike shrugged as he patted me on the shoulder with his uninjured hand. "Hope you feel better, Alice."

"Thanks." I figured I wouldn't bother telling him that something wasn't actually wrong with me and I was just going to see, and I guess rescue, Jasper. "You too."

Once Mike was out of sight, I began to run down the path. I wondered why he had described the Cullens as being angry, but I knew that I would find out when the camp's hospital came into sight. I slowed my pace to a walk as I approached the building, taking a deep breath as I opened the door and entered.

I found the waiting room to be dark and empty, but as I took a couple steps farther inside, I heard the sound of muffled voices. Seeing that the door that led to the room where the patients stayed was cracked open a little, I snuck forward to listen to what was being said. I felt terrible for eavesdropping, but I didn't want to just barge in on them.

My eyes widened when I heard the heated strain of the Cullens' voices as they continued their discussion.

"Rosalie, please calm down," Carlisle muttered, trying his best to be patient.

"No, I won't," Rosalie snapped back. "Carlisle, this is insane! Do you realize how much he's endangering her, how much he's endangering _us_? What if he kills her? He'll bring the wolves down on us!"

"I do not believe that will be the case, Rosalie," Carlisle tried to reason. "He feels strongly toward her. I do not believe he will harm her."

"In a way, this is similar to how Bella feels for Edward," Esme added quietly.

"Esme…" Bella muttered with embarrassment.

"But Bella has more control than Jasper," Rosalie argued. "It's not that I don't trust him, it's just that there's more of a chance that something bad will happen with him. It's too dangerous! She's not one of us!"

"Oh, so you just assume that I'm reckless enough to kill her?" Jasper demanded- this was the first time I had heard him talk. "Just because I was the last one turned doesn't mean that I can't control myself. I've done it so far, haven't I? I don't see how this is so different than Bella's feelings for Edward… or yours for Emmett."

I jumped when I suddenly heard a sound that resembled two rocks hitting each other, and from what I could see through the small crack in the door, Rosalie had just slapped Jasper.

"Don't you _ever_ mention that again!" she hissed, and there was a venom in her voice that had never been there before. In response to her ferocity, Jasper crouched offensively, and I heard a growl come from his throat that sounded so much like an… an… _animal_, it scared me.

"Rosalie. Jasper. Enough!" Carlisle snapped as he stood between the twins. "If everyone just calmed down, we would be able to make it through this and decide as a family what the best thing to do from here would be."

As if realizing what she had just done, Rosalie looked down at her hand before meeting Jasper's gaze. "I'm sorry," she muttered. "That was wrong of me. I should not have struck you, Jasper."

"No, Rosalie. The blame is not yours. I deserved it." Jasper turned away from her, putting his face into his hand. "This is all my fault. I'm tearing our family apart…"

"No, you're not, Jazz," Bella said, placing her hands on his shoulders. "It's natural to feel an attraction to someone."

"But I'm endangering her, Bella," Jasper replied, shrugging out of her gentle hands. "She's human, and we're… monsters. But I can't change the way I feel. I… I love her…"

Carlisle reached over and put his arm around his shoulders, pulling Jasper close to him. "No, you can't change how strongly you feel for Alice," he agreed. "And who knows? It may work out somehow. But you're wrong in one respect. Just because we are… _different_ doesn't mean that we're monsters."

"So I guess being a vampire means that we're gods," Jasper muttered sarcastically. "Face it, Carlisle, we're the most dangerous creatures on this earth. We're demons, the damned- whichever you prefer. I may love Alice, but I won't succumb and allow her to suffer with me."

_Vampire_?! So… Sam's story was… _true_? But… but… it _couldn't_ be… But yet, it all made sense now… The speed, the strength, the cold skin…

I covered my mouth as I gasped, trying to muffle the sound. But it wasn't enough- the room suddenly went silent. After another second, the door was pulled open, and I backed up into the wall behind me when I saw Jasper standing on the other side, the rest of the Cullens behind him, all looking concerned.

"Alice…" Jasper muttered, taking a cautious step toward me.

But I shook my head as tears formed in my eyes, and I scooted away from him. "No… no! Stay away from me!" I cried. "Just leave me alone! All of you!"

The look of pain on Jasper's perfect face broke my heart cleanly in two, but I couldn't bring myself to stay and apologize as the tears quickly fell from my eyes. My legs seemed to have a mind of their own as I ran away from them and pushed open the door of the hospital, never turning back.

**A/N**: All righty then. There's that update for you. Thanks for reading, your reviews are much appreciated! Kind of a sad ending for this one… But, things shouldn't be that way for too long… should they? Well, you'll have to find out with the preview!

**Next Chapter**: _One Exception_

_I fully trusted that Jasper would never hurt me, so I didn't understand why I was running in fear as though my very life was in danger._

Xxx

_"I don't think you're a monster, Jasper," I whispered, knowing that if what he said was true, he could hear me._

_At my quiet statement, Jasper quickly whirled around to look at me, and I gasped when I saw the pain written clearly on his face. "I've killed people, Alice."_

Xxx

_"You don't know how horrible it is to feel a person's last emotions while they die."_

Xxx

"_I'm the monster you find in the scariest of stories," he muttered with disgust that was probably aimed at himself. "I'm the demon from your worst nightmare. And now that I've surrendered myself to the fact that I… that I _love_ you, I've put your life in great danger."_

"_I'm willing to take that chance if you are," I stated firmly with determination._

Xxx

"_You can feel the emotions of others. Read mine now to know that what I say is true," I muttered quietly. "I love you, Jasper Hale, can't you see that?"_


	16. Chapter 15: One Exception

**Disclaimer**: Check previous chapters to know that these characters aren't mine.

**A/N**: Hey, I'm back with another update! Wow, thanks for all the reviews, you guys! Keep them up! You're all awesome and get a cookie with your favorite character's face on it! There's going to be a lot of dialogue, but I believe that this is the chapter that you've all been looking forward to (or at least most of you), so I won't keep you any longer than necessary here to read it. I hope it meets your expectations! So, enjoy it, guys!

_Chapter 15- One Exception_

I ran. I ran from the hospital building and across the parking lot, finally heading down the hidden path that Jasper had only taken me on once before. I don't exactly know why I ran, but I ran and didn't stop or look back. That's all I could bring myself to do at that moment, to try to leave everything behind me.

How could what I heard him say be right? How could Jasper and his family really be… _vampires_? They just didn't exist! But should I be too surprised? I had thought the same thing about werewolves, and a few people at the camp were definitely a werewolf-type thing. Why couldn't the same be said about vampires? It made sense… Oh, God, I was losing my mind!

But why was I running? I truly loved Jasper, I've come to realize that now. It wasn't just a "feeling" of connection that I got from my visions. This was real. And hadn't Jasper said something to Carlisle about loving me too? I fully trusted that Jasper would never hurt me, so I didn't understand why I was running in fear as though my very life was in danger. I just knew that I had to- to get away from everything and think things over.

"Alice! Alice, please! Let me explain!"

I finally came to a stop after running up the hill that the path led to that overlooked the lake that I had nearly drowned in a couple of weeks ago, standing beneath the shade of the single tree to try to catch my breath. The water beneath me looked beautiful now, shimmering in the golden light of the setting sun.

Jasper came up behind me a second later, standing in the shade of the tree also, looking at me with a mixture of hurt and concern. Of _course_ he had been able to catch up to me effortlessly without losing his breath… lucky vampire. "Alice…" he began quietly, hesitantly, as he moved to stand in front of me.

"No. Stop!" I interrupted, and I cringed when I saw the hurt intensify on his face. "Just… just give me a minute to think… okay?"

Without a word, Jasper turned away from me, silently watching the sunset. I stared at his back, feeling tears quickly form in my eyes. I felt terrible… I hadn't meant to hurt him… I noticed him glance quickly back at me for a split second, probably able to sense my tears, but then he immediately looked back out at the lake without saying a word.

"Jasper, I'm sorry," I muttered, taking a cautious step toward him. "I didn't mean to-!"

"You have nothing to apologize for, Alice," Jasper gently cut me off without turning to look at me. "The fault is not yours. It is mine for involving you, a mere _human_, in this."

"So, it's true then?" I asked quietly, a tear leaking from my eye. "You really are a… a…"

"Monster?"

I gasped quietly when I heard Jasper's quiet suggestion. That hadn't been what I was going to say… He was anything but that, at least to me. "I don't think you're a monster, Jasper," I whispered, knowing that if what he said was true, he could hear me.

At my quiet statement, Jasper quickly whirled around to look at me, and I gasped when I saw the pain written clearly all over his face. "I've killed people, Alice," he muttered. "Many people since I have become the monster I am."

"What do you mean?" I asked quietly. For some reason, even though he was telling me that he had taken lives, I wasn't afraid of Jasper.

"I'm not going to tell you my whole story, Alice, at least, not yet," Jasper told me. "But… right before I met you, I wasn't in Texas for military school. I was there to see if my creator was still there since there had been some disturbances in the South, and I was just making sure it wasn't her. It didn't appear to be…"

"Your creator?" I looked at Jasper hesitantly.

Jasper nodded with a sigh. "In my family, I was the only one who wasn't turned by Carlisle," he explained. "Rosalie, Bella, and Esme were. The only reason I am with them is because Rosalie convinced them to take me in since she really is my twin sister."

I thought this information over quickly. "So… everything that your family has told me about them… is a lie?" I asked.

"I'm sorry, Alice, but it's the only way to hide who we really are," Jasper answered. "You must understand…"

For some reason, I was not angry or afraid of what Jasper was telling me. "I do understand, Jasper," I told him. "I just want to know where all of you come from."

Jasper sighed. "I won't get too deep into it, but I'll tell you what you need for you to understand that you _must_ stay away from me," he replied, a note of ferocity in his voice almost as if he was _trying_ to get me to stay away. I knew it wouldn't work though…

"I was changed during the Civil War," Jasper began, hesitating slightly on his words when he saw my eyes widen in shock. "I was a Confederate soldier from Texas who had lied about my age to get into the army. But to make a long story short, I was turned by a woman named Maria. She was trying to create an army of newborn vampires, and she needed help to control them.

"I killed many people, Alice, many vampires while in Texas. With my ability to feel the emotions of others and bend them to my will, I was able to feel their emotions when I approached them- the fear of me, and then the calm when I made them feel calm. But nothing, not even my ability, can change the feelings in a person's final moments on this earth. You don't know how horrible it is to feel a person's last emotions while they die. It made me slip into a depression, along with the constant hate and anger I was surrounded by.

"I didn't want to feed on humans, but I had no other options if I wanted to survive. I admit, for about the last month I stayed there, I tried to starve myself in hopes that I too would die. But by some cruel twist of fate, I was kept alive, and I suffered tremendously through that last month. Not only was I forced to serve Maria, but I was growing weaker from lack of feeding while having to deal with the constant nagging of the thirst for human blood. But, I was able to ignore it, at least mostly.

"Finally, I was able to escape from Maria with the help of a friend I had made named Peter and his mate, Charlotte. I could tell she was getting frustrated with me due to my new depression, and I knew Maria would kill me as she had killed Nettie and Lucy, two other vampires that had served her and outlived their usefulness. So I wandered with Peter and Charlotte for a time, but the depression still lingered since they fed on humans and I could still feel their emotions as they died. I left them then, wandering on my own for a couple decades. I tried not to feed on humans, but sometimes, the thirst would become to powerful, and I would have to succumb. I wasn't pleased with it, but what other choice did I have?

"But the greatest surprise came at the end of my wanderings when I entered the Forks area. I was walking through the woods when I encountered Rosalie. I was shocked to see that she looked exactly the same since before I had joined the Confederate army. But then, I realized that she had also been turned into a… hellish creature like me shortly before I was when she moved to Washington with her abusive fiancé. The only thing different about her were her eyes. They were a beautiful shade of light gold while mine were a dark, blood red.

"Rosalie explained to me that she had been turned by a doctor in Forks, who had saved her life. What was unique about him, however, was he only fed on the blood of animals and not humans, which was a lifestyle that he passed on to her, his daughter Bella, and his wife, Esme, which is why their eyes were gold. This, of course, was Carlisle."

Jasper paused for a moment, watching me as tears slowly fell from my eyes. But I wasn't crying out of fear for myself. These tears were for all of the pain and suffering that Jasper had faced in his early life as a… a vampire. He took a hesitant step toward me, and I gave him a smile through my tears to show him that I wasn't afraid. "Then what happened?" I asked quietly, curious to learn more.

He sighed. "Rosalie brought me to Carlisle to show me that this existence was truly possible, to show me that we had another option," Jasper answered. "With them, I felt happier than I ever had before. Carlisle devoted a lot of time to helping me adjust to this new lifestyle, but it was more difficult for me than the others due to my rough background. I had been the only one to taste human blood, and it was a difficult transition. It was a long struggle, but I was finally able to convert to animal blood. It's not nearly as satisfying as the blood of humans, but it is enough to sustain us, and I take great pleasure in knowing that I'm not taking an innocent person's life. There have been a couple of times where I have snapped and killed, or almost killed, a human, but Carlisle was always there to guide me back to the right path. He stayed with me, never losing patience or trust in me when I made a mistake.

"But the most difficult thing for me is that I was the last in my family to be turned, which, in a sense, makes me the youngest. Because of this, I… I have the most trouble with my self-control when there are humans around…

"Except for when I'm with you."

I blinked with surprise, not expecting this last statement. "Me?" I asked.

Jasper nodded in answer. "When I first met you, I took the precautions my whole family has to take," he explained. "I tried to stay a little farther away from you and held my breath if I was closer to you than I felt comfortable with at the time so I wouldn't catch the scent of your blood, and… Well, I bet you can guess the outcome." I shivered slightly, imagining the painful death I might have had at his hands.

"But soon, I found that those precautions weren't necessary. Whenever I'm around you, I feel as though I'm in complete control, though I'm not sure why it happens. And… You know of my ability to feel and manipulate the emotions of those around me. Since the first time I met you, and now every time that I'm with you… I feel hope. That's one emotion that I have never experienced, at least since I have become a vampire. You have given me something, Alice, that I could never have had otherwise, something that makes me complete. That is why I'm so drawn to you, why I'm so protective of you. But now…" Jasper's sentence trailed off as he sighed, looking down at the ground in defeat.

I sighed as well, taking another step closer to him so that there was a small distance separating us. "I don't care what things you used to do, Jasper, you're still not a monster in my eyes," I told him gently, watching as he looked back up at me with surprise in his features. "You've saved me too, much more than you know and probably will ever realize. I cannot call you a monster for that. In fact, if I didn't know any better, I would say that you were sent to be my guardian angel, or something."

"But I've frightened you," Jasper said quietly, raising his hand and gently wiping my tears away. "I've hurt you…"

"Don't be silly," I laughed, catching him off guard as he slowly lowered his hand. "I just think it's ironic that I hate horror stories, and now, I'm living my own personal one."

This proved to be the wrong thing to say. Jasper turned his head away from me and looked down on our nearly touching feet. "I'm the monster you find in the scariest of stories," he muttered with disgust that was probably aimed at himself. "I'm the demon from your worst nightmares. And now that I've surrendered myself to the fact that I… that I _love_ you, I've put your life in great danger."

"I'm willing to take that risk if you are," I stated firmly, my eyes flaring with determination. "With horror stories, though I don't like them, there is always one exception I find that I do like. For me, that story is _Dracula_. But in this case, Jasper, _you_ are that one exception." I reached forward and placed my hand lightly on his cold, stone cheek, pushing his face toward me as he slowly looked back into my eyes.

"You can feel the emotions of others. Read mine now to know that what I say is true," I muttered quietly. "I love you, Jasper Hale, can't you see that?" I silently pleaded with him, hoping that he would understand.

Jasper searched my face to figure out the emotions that I was feeling, and a small smile appeared on his face as his eyes shone when he felt my sincerity… and my deep-felt love. "Yes, Alice Brandon," he whispered, placing his hand on my cheek. Then, he closed his eyes and slowly leaned down toward me.

I tilted my head up toward him and closed my eyes as well, my heart speeding up a little when I felt his cold lips press gently against mine. This felt completely natural, but the moment was over much too soon when he pulled back a little as if he had only been testing the feeling. I didn't want him to leave yet, so I put my arm around his neck to stop him as I placed my forehead against his since he was still thankfully bent down.

"Was it… bad?" I asked him quietly, feeling a little nervous. What? I had never kissed anyone before, but I was still relieved that Jasper was my first.

Jasper laughed a little at my question. "No," he answered quietly with a smile that made my heart flutter. "Quite the opposite, actually." He then wrapped his arm around my waist and gently pulled me closer to him so that there was no space left between us before he kissed me again.

This time, I noticed that the action was filled with a little more passion since I guess the "test run" was over and this was something that he had been wanting for some time, as had I. Determined to keep the moment lasting for as long as possible, I returned the kiss with more intensity as I wrapped both of my arms around his neck as he put his other arm around my waist as well, our lips never breaking apart. But then, I sighed with disappointment when I had to pull back because I had to breathe.

Jasper laughed at my poor human expense, easily scooping me up into his arms before he sat down on the ground and placed me in his lap. I laid my head on his shoulder as we stayed that way for a minute, just beginning to get comfortable when he suddenly lay down on his back in the grass. I scooted as close to his side as I could be, laying my head on his strong chest. I knew that I would have to get used to the no heartbeat thing, but it wouldn't be impossible. Jasper wrapped his arms around me to keep me in place, and I sighed with contentment when I felt as though my body had been molded to perfectly fit those arms.

"I love you," I murmured as I closed my eyes, draping my arm over his stomach.

I heard him laugh a little before he kissed the top of my head. "And I love you," he replied quietly.

At that moment, as I lay in the arms of my angel, I realized what it truly meant to be in love and the ecstasy that came along with it. I was relieved that Jasper was now mine and I was his, that we had been able to put our differences aside and make the relationship that we had both been longing for work. Because right now, there was no place that I would rather be.

* * *

I would have been content to lie there on top of the hill beneath the shade of the single tree in Jasper's arms forever, but sadly, we had to leave only about thirty short minutes later because of dinner. I claimed that I didn't need to eat for a while yet, but Jasper was determined to ensure that my human needs were met. But the one thing that I noticed was that his cold fingers were intertwined with mine as we walked back down the hill and headed toward the mess hall, which was one of the best feelings in the world.

When we entered the building, I saw that most people were still in line, so we were earlier than we usually were. But when Jasper and I got at the back of the line, my hand still in his, some people near us began to look us over curiously as they whispered to each other. Color rushed to my face when I realized that I was now going to be the talk of the people who knew me because I now had a boyfriend…

Jasper laughed a little, releasing my hand before he put his arm around my shoulders and pulled me close to his side. "Don't worry, they're just curious," he muttered to me so that only I could hear. "Oh… wait, never mind. There's some jealousy from a couple of girls. They're wondering how you ended up with me. Sam was right in his story when he said that we were designed to draw people to us, you know."

"Oh, great." That didn't make me feel much better as I sighed, placing my head against his chest. "I guess I'm lucky I got you then, aren't I?"

"Yes, you are. But I would be willing to argue that _I_ am even luckier to have _you_."

I looked up at him, slightly annoyed to see his smirk, but before I could continue to debate with him about who was truly the lucky one, I turned as I heard quick, nearly silent footsteps approach us.

"Oh, good. You guys worked things out. I was worried for a little bit," Bella said with a smile as she looked from me to Jasper. "I'm so happy for you! Just make sure you treat her right, Jazz."

"I will, Bella," Jasper assured her with a smile of his own as she stood in line on the other side of him. "But what's the _real_ reason you wanted to talk to us?"

Bella's smile vanished instantly as she sighed, looking back at me with worry. "Hey, Alice… is Edward okay?" she asked quietly.

"Um, yeah. Last time I checked," I answered, a little confused. "Why, do you think something's wrong or something?"

She sighed again. "He just doesn't seem like himself," Bella muttered. "I can tell that he isn't feeling well, but he keeps telling us that he's just fine."

"That sounds like Edward…" I agreed quietly. "But don't worry, Bella. I'm sure if something was truly wrong, he would tell us. Where is he, anyway?"

"He's staying back at the cabin," Bella said. "He said that he would meet up with us after we ate since he isn't hungry. Emmett and Rosalie are on their way here, though."

"Well, we'll have to see how Ed's doing when we meet up with him after dinner," I muttered when I was finally able to start grabbing food. In truth, I was very worried about my brother, especially since I wasn't able to get the vision of him in the hospital out of my mind.

Just as I had come to expect, and now understood, Jasper and Bella didn't grab anything to eat before we sat down at a table to wait for Emmett and Rosalie. Something different tonight, though, was that I was now sitting on Jasper's lap while I leaned back against him, and Bella continued to give us small, approving smiles between her worried, downcast looks.

The line had died down considerably by the time Emmett and Rosalie walked through the door, but even when they sat down at the table with us, the heavy mood didn't change. Rosalie looked at me sitting so close to her brother as she tried to be cheerful about how things had worked out between us, but I could still see that there was some tension there. She was still worried about my safety with Jasper…

Emmett was strangely quiet while he ate, and I knew that he was just as worried about Edward as I was. How could he not be? If Bella, who had sharper senses than any normal human, was worried because she could tell that something was wrong, then just how bad was my brother's condition? I wasn't sure of the answer to my silent question, but I was grateful for Jasper's icy hand around mine for reassurance. I looked up at him, and he kissed my forehead lightly before I laid my head back on his shoulder.

So far, this summer hadn't been going quite the way I expected it to go. First, I had found out that someone is out to kill me. Second, I found out that one of the people who has a major crush on me is a werewolf. And third, I discovered the love of my life, which is the best thing that has ever happened to me, and he just happens to be a vampire. After all of this, I have to wonder…

What could possibly happen next?

* * *

"So, being vampires, do you guys sleep at all?" I asked, looking down at my two roommates from the top bunk.

"Nope," Bella answered from the bed beneath mine as she read her copy of Shakespeare's "Othello." "The beds we set up for us here are basically for show. And no, we don't have coffins in our house either. But while you're sleeping, one of us typically goes to patrol the area and the other heads over to your brothers' cabin while they're sleeping when Jasper stops by here for a few minutes to check up on you, and then we switch again."

I felt color rush to my face. Jasper has been here over the past couple of weeks while I was sleeping? Talk about embarrassing… Kinda' romantic too… in a way.

Speaking of sleeping, I yawned when I realized just how tired I actually was. I glanced over at the clock, seeing by the glowing, green numbers that it was almost eleven. We hadn't actually met up with Edward after we ate dinner since he had spent the rest of the evening in his cabin, but I wasn't too worried yet since I hadn't heard anything about him being rushed to the hospital or anything.

At least… not yet…

"Is it your turn to help patrol the campsite, Rose?"

"Yeah," Rosalie answered as she finished situating the bed neatly and shutting the curtains on the window before turning to her adoptive sister. "I take it that you're staying here then?"

"I will until Jasper shows up," Bella confirmed, and I blushed fiercely when Rosalie's gaze quickly flickered to me. "I want to check on Edward anyway. I'm really worried about him…"

"Just make sure you be careful out there and don't get caught, Bella," Rosalie warned with a smile. As if a vampire could get caught…

"You too, Rose," Bella replied with, judging by her tone, a smirk of her own.

Rosalie nodded slightly before looking up at me again. "Just relax and get some sleep, Alice," she told me gently. "I promise that we have everything under control."

Now that I knew that Rosalie had super speed and strength, I believed what she told me. "All right," I said as I nodded. "Thank you, Rosalie."

"You're welcome, Alice." With one last smile at me and then at Bella, Rosalie opened the door of the cabin and disappeared into the night, locking up behind her.

Since I figured that I should probably follow Rosalie's advice, I quickly changed into my pajamas, which consisted of a small, white tank top and a pair of short, light gray shorts. I packed the clothes I had worn that day into one of my bags and put I at the end of my bed before laying back on my pillow and covering myself with the blanket, hugging my stuffed animals close to me. But even though I was tried, I couldn't seem to calm down enough to sleep.

"Do you want me to turn off the lights, Alice?" Bella suddenly asked from beneath me. "Don't worry, I could still read if you did."

I laughed a little as I snuggled closer to my stuffed bat and wolf. "No, that's all right, Bella," I answered. "I don't think I'm going to be falling asleep for quite some time yet."

"All right. Well, good night anyway."

"Good night."

My eyes slowly closed as I listened to my best friend hum quietly to herself as she flipped through "Othello" faster than the quickest human reader could ever dream of doing and would probably end up reducing them to tears, and these noises strangely relaxed me. I must have dozed off at some point, because I jumped when a pair of cold, sturdy arms suddenly wrapped around me from behind. My eyes shot open as I frantically looked around to see who was now beside me, but I couldn't because the lights in the cabin had been turned off.

"Shh, Alice. It's all right. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to startle you."

"_Jasper_?!" I hissed in a whisper though I didn't need to, my racing heart slowly beginning to return to its normal rate. I released my stuffed animals as I turned onto my back in an attempt to see him better, but I could barely see his outline in the faint rays of the moonlight sneaking into the cabin from behind the curtains.

"Yes, Alice, it's only me," Jasper laughed a little. He moved one of his arms so that it was underneath my neck to support it better since I had changed position, and he laid his other arm gently over my stomach with his hand resting on my side. "Who knew you were so jumpy?"

I shivered slightly from the cold radiating from his body, but I appreciated the drop in temperature. The cabins got really hot at night. "How long have you been here?" I asked.

"I just got here, and Bella just left," Jasper answered. "It took a while for Emmett to fall asleep since he's so worried about Edward."

"How is he?" I pressed anxiously.

I could almost feel Jasper's hesitance as he searched for the right words. "He had a slight fever when I left," he told me. "Because of this, I believe that Bella will want to spend the rest of the night in their cabin to keep her eye on him."

"So… you're going to be spending the whole night here?" I didn't dare get my hopes up too high.

"That is what that would mean, yes," Jasper said, his tone laced with amusement. "We're not going to leave you alone with the tracker out there."

I smiled broadly, and I was sure that Jasper could see it the lack of lighting anyway. But then, it vanished as I sighed heavily. "I'm really worried about Edward, Jasper," I muttered.

Jasper placed the hand that wound behind my neck lightly on top of my head. "I'm sure that things will work out fine regardless what happens from here," he whispered to me, his mouth close to my ear.

I shivered when I felt his cold breath on my neck, and then I laughed a little. "You always say that," I told him.

"That's because I mean it. And it seems that you have yet to believe me." Then, before I could say anything else, his cold lips landed on my neck right beneath my chin. My heart began to race as Jasper moved down to the base of my neck and placed another kiss there, but I tried to remain as calm as possible for him so that he wouldn't lose control. Even though he had told me that he had better control around me than anyone else, I'm sure that he still had limits, which is what he was trying to figure out.

But when Jasper moved back to my throat, I couldn't stand it anymore. I tilted his head up so that his lips met mine, an action which he didn't hesitate to return. I wound my arms around his neck while he wrapped his behind my back, shifting a little so that he was somewhat on top of me.

Then, I sighed when I had to pull away to breathe, but I surprisingly found that Jasper didn't move away. After a minute, once I caught my breath, I pulled his lips back to down to mine. I was still surprised about how natural this felt. It was only our second kiss, but it sure didn't feel like it.

My hand then moved down to his back, just to make sure that he wasn't going to leave, but then it went down a little and snuck beneath his shirt slightly. As soon as my fingers came in contact with his skin, Jasper broke the kiss and moved a little bit away from me.

"I… I think that's enough for tonight…" he said, but judging by his tone, Jasper wasn't angry with what I had done. He was just… surprised by it, caught off guard.

Sighing, I laid my head back down on my pillow, and Jasper lay down beside me again. I turned onto my side to face him, and I curled up against his chest while he placed his arm around me. "I love you," I whispered, kissing his throat quickly before closing my eyes. How easy those words were to say to him…

After a moment, Jasper bent down and kissed the top of my head. "I love you too," he muttered, tightening his arm around me. "Goodnight, Alice."

**A/N**: All right, there you have it. Alice and Jasper are now together. But besides what Jasper told her, there is another reason why he considers Alice so close to him, and I've been putting in clues in some previous chapters. Anyone have any guesses? Let me know in your reviews if you do! Oh, and just a note about the Cullen family backgrounds. I'm going to try to keep them as close as possible as to how they are in the books, but I'm going to also take creative license with each of them. Bella will be the most different since I've invented a past for her with the help of a friend. So, that's how that's going to happen. I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Thanks for reading, your reviews are much appreciated! And, as always, here's the next preview.

**Next Chapter**: _Every Scar Tells a Story_

_But he didn't answer. My eyes narrowed when another long moment drew by where he didn't say anything. "Jasper?" I asked quietly. Still, he said nothing._

_Feeling anxious now, I slowly raised a shaking hand to my pillow and got a firm grip on it before pulling it away. But what I saw made me scream._

Xxx

"_Well, I guess what I mean is that it feels like its… _more_ than just a _thing_, you know?" I tried to answer as I grabbed a piece of French toast, an apple, and a box of plain, white milk before leaving the line._

_Mike's eyes widened as he followed me. "_More_?" he repeated. "Alice, you haven't, like, done… _that_, have you?"_

Xxx

Suddenly, Edward wavered, and he released Bella's hand as he collapsed backwards off the bench and hit the floor, unmoving.

"_Edward!"_

Xxx

_"What are these?"_

_Jasper sighed as he took my hand, stopping it in place where it was lingering over his chest. "Our venom is the only thing that leaves a mark," he answered simply, and my eyes widened in horror when I realized what he meant._

"_These are… these are bite marks?"_

Xxx

_Completely trusting that he wouldn't hurt me, I attempted to try my luck to deepen the kiss. Seeming to guess what I had in mind, Jasper's lips slowly, hesitantly, began to part a little beneath mine…_


	17. Chapter 16: Every Scar Tells a Story

**Disclaimer****: **Nope, characters still aren't mine. But, you all already know that.

**A/N**: Hey, I'm back with another update! Out of curiosity, did any of you watch "Criminal Minds" last night? Omg, Jackson was amazing! Who knew he could pull off a role like that? It was just incredible! If you didn't see it, you have to go look it up on youtube or something. I think there are a couple clips on the CBS website too. But, you have to see it! The episode is called "Conflicted." Okay, enough of my rambling… Thank you so much for your reviews! And, here's the next chapter!

_Chapter 16- Every Scar Tells a Story_

I slowly opened my eyes when faint sunlight hit them, and I saw with relief that a pair of strong, cold arms were still wrapped around me. I smiled to myself as I looked up and saw that familiar blond hair was visible, but his face was still hidden behind my pillow.

"Good morning, Jasper," I muttered sleepily, placing my hand on his shoulder.

But he didn't answer me. My eyes narrowed when another long moment drew by where he didn't say anything. "Jasper?" I asked quietly. Still, he said nothing.

Feeling anxious now, I slowly raised a shaking hand to my pillow and got a firm grip on it before pulling it away. But what I saw made me scream.

A pair of crimson eyes met mine as the vampire beside me sat up and pulled his hair back into a familiar blond ponytail. A smirk appeared on his face when he saw the fear clearly in my eyes. "Hello, Alice," the man who I assumed to be the one known as "the tracker" greeted in a friendly way before bending over and digging his teeth into my neck.

* * *

My eyes snapped open as I screamed, quickly looking behind me to make sure that Jasper was the one that was truly beside me and not the creep from my visions.

But what I saw made me gasp in fear. "_Jasper_!"

Jasper was lying on the bed beside me, but he was curled on his side with his eyes tightly closed and tensed as though he was in pain. Not knowing what to do, I reached forward and placed my hand on his cheek, hopefully in a comforting manner. "I'm here. Jasper, please. Tell me what's wrong. I'm here." Was it even possible for a vampire to be hurt like this? I guess it was…

At the anxious sound of my voice, Jasper's eyes slowly fluttered open as his gaze shot up to me. "Alice…" he muttered, his voice strained as he reached up and grabbed my hand tightly. "Please calm down…"

I was shocked by his words. "What?"

"Just… focus on calming down," Jasper repeated as he closed his eyes again. "Forget about your nightmare…"

How he knew that I had a nightmare I wasn't sure, but that didn't matter. If calming down would help Jasper… "Oh… um, all right." I closed my eyes, focusing on yesterday when Jasper and I had shared our first kiss. The setting sun reflecting off the lake… how peaceful and happy I felt in his arms like I was meant to be there…

Then, I opened my eyes again when I felt Jasper's grip loosen on my hand, and I watched as he sat up a little beside me and gave me a small smile. "Thank you," he muttered, laying his head back against the wall as he sighed. "Who knew that there was such powerful emotion in a body so small? That might have something to do with your traumatic past…"

"Jasper, what happened?" I asked, still a little nervous about seeing him in pain when I woke up. I didn't think that was exactly normal… even though my "normal" was now different than everyone else's. I mean, I had a boyfriend that was a vampire, some close friends that were also vampires, and I knew a gang of teenage werewolves. Seriously, my "normal" wasn't… well, _normal_.

"You know of my ability to feel the emotions of others," Jasper answered me quietly, intertwining his fingers with mine. "Sometimes, when those emotions become too strong, typically the negative ones, they become overpowering and can be painful for me."

I looked back at him, trying to figure out what he was saying. "So, if by chance that strong emotion was fear, hate, sorrow, or even pain…"

"It would most likely hurt me, yes," Jasper nodded.

My eyes widened. "Oh, my God, Jasper, I'm sorry!" I exclaimed, realizing that I had been the reason I found him in so much pain when I woke up. "You felt my nightmare!"

"Shh," Jasper tried to soothe me as he pulled me into his sturdy arms. "Alice, it's all right. You can't control whether you have a nightmare or not. Besides, everything's fine now. I'm not in any more pain, all right?"

I nodded, but I still felt bad about hurting him. I seemed to have a knack for doing that lately in some form or another… "Okay," I muttered, but I still wasn't completely convinced.

Jasper smiled down at me, seeming to sense this as he leaned down and kissed my cheek. "It's almost time for breakfast," he muttered, releasing me before jumping off the top bunk and landing gracefully on the hard floor. "Get changed, and I'll meet you at the fork in the path in a few minutes.

"All right. See you soon." I smiled as I watched Jasper sneak out the window of the cabin instead of the door so he wouldn't be seen by any of the other girls in the area, and I laughed a little as I reached for one of the bags at the end of my bed.

"Great," I muttered to myself, my smile still lingering as I picked out an outfit for the day. "Out of all the vampires I could have chosen for my boyfriend, I get stuck with the freakin' empath."

* * *

I stood in the breakfast line alone that morning since Bella had grabbed Jasper as soon as we entered the mess hall. She seemed anxious, and they both kept glancing at Edward, who was sitting toward the back of the noisy room with Emmett and Rosalie, as they whispered to each other, which made me very nervous. But what made the situation even worse was that Mike Newton was standing behind me in line.

"So… you and Japer Hale are a thing now, huh?" he muttered in my ear.

"Um, yeah, I guess you could put it that way," I replied, my mind not really on the conversation as I absently grabbed my tray.

"You guess?" Mike asked. Great, I had triggered his curiosity. Smart move, Alice… "What do you mean?"

I rolled my eyes. "Well, I guess what I mean is that if feels like it's… _more_ than just a _thing_, you know?" I tried to answer as I grabbed a piece of French toast, an apple, and a box of plain, white milk before leaving the line.

Mike's eyes widened as he followed me. "_More_?" he repeated. "Alice, you haven't, like, done… _that_, have you?"

When I realized what he was implying, my eyes grew wide as I gasped and spun around to face him, nearly dropping my tray. "What?! No! _Hell_ no!" I exclaimed, but the talking around me was so loud that hardly anyone noticed… except for my boyfriend with the supersonic hearing, I bet. He was probably laughing at me right now… "Mike, what gave you that idea?!" But despite myself, I found with embarrassment that I was blushing. It's not that I hadn't thought about it, being a teenager and all, but I would _never_ act on it.

"I don't know. Just the way you said it, I guess," Mike shrugged. "The glint in your eye, the way you had a dream-like tone to your voice… you know, those kinds of things."

"Well, you can't tell me that you haven't at least thought about doing that kind of thing with Jessica," I grumbled, stopping at "the island" as we called it to grab some napkins and any necessary utensils.

This time, Mike flushed. "That… that's a different story…" he muttered as he grabbed some things he needed too.

I smirked up at him. "Oh, so just because you've had a crush on me for the past two years and have finally found a girl who likes you back doesn't mean that you can't think about that?" I teased.

Mike sighed. "Fine. Do you really want to know why your relationship with Jasper is such a big deal to everyone?" When he saw my expectant look, he decided to continue. "Well, first off, he's a member of the Cullen family, and they typically don't form any kind of relationship with us _normal_ kids. Apart from you and your brothers, they ignore the rest of us. They think that they're better than us or something…

"But it's mainly because the girl he chose is _you_. I don't mean that in an offensive way since I've liked you, but no one thought that you were going to end up with anyone here in Forks. Then, suddenly, you are the girlfriend of the one boy that almost every girl here wants. It just doesn't quite add up, you know?"

For one panicked moment when Mike mentioned the fact that the Cullens didn't form relationships with the "normal" kids, I thought he knew their secret about hem being vampires. But I knew that was impossible since I was the only one who knew besides the wolves, so I brushed the feeling aside. "Well, I can assure you, Mike, that nothing out of the ordinary happened," I told him, picking up my tray again once I had everything I needed. "He asked me out, and I said yes, end of story."

"Has he asked you to the dance yet?"

I paused at Mike's simple question. With everything else that has been happening lately, I completely forgot about the dance at the end of the summer. So, I just shrugged. "No, but I'll bring it up in conversation sometime," I answered cheerfully as I turned my back to him and began walking away. "Later, Mike. And remember to keep it rated PG."

"…Bye, Alice…"

As soon as I was away from Mike, Jasper was beside me and had his arm around my shoulders. "That took an excruciatingly long time," he said softly, leading me in the direction of the table that our typical group was sitting at.

"You think so? You should have been with me, then. I thought Mike's questioning would _never_ end…"

"What was he talking to you about?" Jasper asked. "I could barely hear you since Bella was talking to me the whole time."

I blushed fiercely. "He… he was asking me if… if we've done… _that_…" I muttered with embarrassment.

Jasper looked down at me as he tried to understand what I meant, but his eyes shone with amusement when he figured it out by my emotions. "Oh, you mean _that_," he replied with a shake of his head. "Is that all you humans ever think about?"

"Some of them."

"But not you?"

I moved my eyes away from him, hoping that I wasn't feeling _too_ embarrassed. "Not usually…"

Jasper laughed again as he tightened his arm around me, and the conversation was dropped as we sat down across the table from Bella and Edward. I looked at my older brother and bit my lip nervously. His face was pretty pale except for his cheeks, which were flushed. He didn't have any food in front of him, but he held Bella's hand in his and often brought it up to his cheeks as if to cool them.

"Are you feeling all right, Ed?" I asked, taking a bite of my French toast. "Do you want my apple or something?"

"No thanks, Alice. I'm not hungry," Edward muttered in answer as he gave me a pathetic smile. "Thank you for the offer though."

"She does have a point though, Man," Emmett added from beside me through a mouthful of French toast. "You don't look so good."

Rosalie glared at Emmett from where she sat across from him at the table. "Would you _not_ talk with food in your mouth?" she snapped. "Besides, I don't think that will make Edward feel any better."

Emmett grinned sheepishly as he swallowed his food. "Sorry."

"I don't think that will make much of a difference, Rosalie…" Edward murmured, closing his eyes.

From where I sat in Jasper's arms, I suddenly felt him tense around me. I looked up into his face, and I was scared to see that his eyes were on Edward intently…

Suddenly, Edward wavered, and he released Bella's hand as he collapsed backwards off the bench and hit the floor, unmoving.

"Edward!" My scream mirrored Bella's as I pushed myself to my feet while Bella dropped down beside him, placing her hand on his forehead with worry. "Edward!"

I gasped and looked to my right when Jasper jumped up from the table and knelt down beside Edward the same time that Rosalie did. "We'll take him to Carlisle," he told Emmett and I, looking at me intently. "Please, stay here for now. I don't think there should be any visitors yet." Jasper then put one of Edward's arms around his neck while Bella did the same with his other as they stood up. Then, they quickly moved around the table as they headed for the mess hall door with Rosalie right behind them.

Tears formed in my eyes and one leaked out as I slowly sank back to the bench, Emmett pulling me into his arms as a form of hug. I leaned into his embrace, laying my head on his shoulder as I continued to silently cry. True, we were both upset about what had happened to Edward, but only I knew the full extent of what _could_ happen to our brother.

* * *

I sat on top of the hill that I now knew so well, but this time, I sat out of the shade of the lone tree. The noon sun was hot above me, but I hardly noticed. I was past the crying stage now, but I was still in definite panic mode. I had seen a glimpse of Edward's possible future, and I was terrified by the fact that it may actually come to pass…

"I thought I might find you here. Where's Emmett?"

At the sudden gentle voice, I quickly turned to look over my shoulder and watched as Jasper came and sat down behind me in the grass, sticking to the shade. I sighed as I turned completely around to face him. "He's in his cabin, probably beating the life out of some poor, innocent pillow by now," I muttered. "How's Edward?"

Jasper also sighed at my question. "The fever that has settled in him is pretty severe," he told me truthfully, though I could tell that it hurt him to do so. "But Carlisle is trying everything that he can to try to combat it. Though I have to warn you, the options are becoming limited. But if everything else fails, there is one more option that Carlisle hasn't even considered in a very long time."

"What's that?" I asked quietly, thinking about the vision that I had about this very event. "Biting him? Yeah, Jasper, like I'm really going to let you guys kill my brother." I know my tone was harsher than I meant for it to be, but I was very stressed.

By the hesitance on Jasper's face, I could tell that I hit the mark. "The thing that you have to understand, Alice, is that Carlisle doesn't bite to kill, he does it to save," he tried to explain carefully. "He has never killed anyone because he hates the thought of taking any life. And he would only consider turning someone into a mon… into one of us if there was absolutely no other way to save them. I'm just warning you now that might be the case."

I sighed as I placed my chin on top of my knees. "That's what Carlisle's going to do," I muttered in defeat, my words sounding broken. "I've seen it, Jasper…"

"You said yourself that the future can change," Jasper said, hoping to console me as he reached for my hand that was partially in the shade and took it. "This my not be the way things have to go."

Personally, I didn't see any other option, but I nodded in agreement anyway. Though as I looked down at Jasper's hand curiously, I had another question on my mind that I've been wanting to ask him for some time now. "Jasper, why do you always stay out of the sun? Is it not good for your abnormally pale complexion or something? Or do vampires really spontaneously combust into flames if they're in the sunshine?"

Jasper raised his gaze to meet one, once again hesitant despite my teasing. "Do… do you really want to discuss this now?" he murmured.

I nodded, knowing for sure that there must have been a more serious reason behind it. "Please," I whispered. "I'm your girlfriend, Jasper. Can't I know?"

"It's not that I wasn't going to have to tell you at some point, Alice, but this is just something that I was hoping that I wouldn't have to expose you to yet." Jasper released my hand and slowly got to his feet as he only took a couple of steps forward so that he was still in the shade and not in the sunlight yet. "This is why I don't to into the sun- people would know that my sister, my parents, and I were different." He sighed, rolling up his sleeves to expose his arms and undoing the top couple of buttons of his shirt to reveal part of his chest, which made me blush slightly. Then, he took a hesitant step into the sunlight.

At first, I couldn't believe my eyes. If I thought he was beautiful at first, Jasper was literally dazzling now since his skin was shimmering in the sun's rays, almost as if it was coated with tiny diamonds. I slowly rose to my feet and took a couple of steps to stand in front of him, marveling at his perfect skin. I couldn't understand why he was looking down at me so hesitantly since he was probably the most beautiful being that I had ever seen.

But that's when I saw them- the small, crescent-shaped marks hardly visible to me that covered the skin that he had revealed. There were so many… "Jasper, what happened to you?" I asked quietly, holding his hand in mine as I ran my fingers gently over his forearm before moving them to his jaw, his neck, his chest. I wasn't afraid of these strange marks. I was more worried about how he had gotten them. "What are these?"

Jasper sighed as he took my hand, stopping it in place where it was lingering over his chest. "Our venom is the only thing that leaves a mark," he answered simply, and my eyes widened in horror when I realized what he meant.

"These are… these are _bite_ marks?"

"Battle scars," Jasper elaborated solemnly. "I told you that I spent the majority of my early life as a vampire in the South helping my creator try to control her army of newborns. It wasn't a simple thing to do, Alice, and I hope you never come in contact with one. They were unruly creatures who hated to be controlled. These marks are from the attempts on my life that the newborns made."

It was then that I wondered just how many vampires had tried to kill Jasper… and how many vampires he had killed as they made the attempt. It must have been terrible having to kill another creature just to save yourself. Then, I noticed one mark at the base of his neck that stood out from the others since it was raised a little more and was a tiny bit darker. "What about this one?" I wondered, raising my hand and running my fingers over it delicately.

But Jasper flinched and backed away from me as he retreated into the shadows, and I gasped as I stared at him in shock. "I'm sorry," I said quickly as I lowered my hand. "I didn't realize-!"

"No, it's not your fault. It's just that…" Jasper's sentence trailed off as he sighed. "This is the mark left by Maria when she turned me, so it's the most painful. I mean, they all were, but this one in particular.

"But don't you see, Alice? This is what I didn't want to expose you to because it would show you how much of a monster I truly am."

I sighed as I saw how upset he was, and I reached forward and grabbed his hand, pulling him back into the sunlight to stand beside me though I noticed that he was very hesitant to do so. I put my arms around his glistening neck, and he slowly wound his arms around my waist. "Do you really think these scare me?" I asked with a slight laugh. "Please, Jasper. I still love you, scars and all. In fact, I think they make you more unique, which in turn makes you more loveable."

Jasper looked into my eyes, quickly reading my emotions to figure out if I was really telling the truth. When he saw that I was, his smile mirrored my own. "Thank you, Alice," he muttered. "That's what I needed to hear."

Feeling that this would be one of those "moments" you see in those cheesy romance movies, I used one of my hands to push his head down so that his lips met mine in a tender kiss. I was still a lot shorter than him, however, so I had to stand on my toes just to reach his mouth. But then, Jasper suddenly lifted me up a little so that I was closer to his height, and I put one of my legs around his waist to try to keep my balance in the air since this was something that I wasn't used to. I then sighed with contentment but also surprise when one of his hands moved down and slipped beneath my shirt to rest on the bottom of my back, the slight pressure pushing my body even closer to his as our emotions began to run a little higher.

Well, if he was comfortable doing that…

My hand moved down his neck before sneaking beneath his shirt at his collar to his stone back. Jasper began to kiss me with a little more intensity when he felt my fingers against his skin, and I knew that we were once again testing how far he could go. My hand then moved smoothly from his back to the exposed part of his chest and rested there, and I could feel his guard drop slightly. Completely trusting that he wouldn't hurt me, I attempted to try my luck and deepen the kiss. Seeming to guess what I had in mind, Jasper's lips slowly, hesitantly, began to part a little beneath mine…

But then, our moment was interrupted by a loud growl from the trees behind us. Jasper broke away from me and held me protectively in his arms as he held my head down against his chest, his eyes resting intently on the path ahead of us that led down the hill. Nothing moved...

Then, I gasped in horror as my eyes widened, watching as a large, light brown wolf crashed through the trees... coming straight for Jasper.

**A/N**: Sorry, had to throw in another cliffie. They're my specialty! I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Thanks for reading, your reviews are much appreciated. And, here we go with the preview!

**Next Chapter**: _Trapped in a Small Box Without Air Holes_

_Going completely by my instinct and without thinking about what I was doing, I pushed myself to my feet and threw myself in front of Jasper, hugging him tightly. I started to sob freely since I could hear that the wolf was still in its charge, its dagger-like claws only inches away from me._

Xxx

_"It's just that now that this has gone public, you'll both have to be very careful so this doesn't end badly._

"_Badly as in… Jasper accidentally kills me?"_

Xxx

"_Edward," I whispered, taking his hand in mine as tears formed in my eyes. "I promise you that everything will be all right. And… I assure you that Carlisle will do _anything_ he has to do to make you better again."_

Xxx

_You shouldn't be walking about on your own at night, you know."_

_I frowned and crossed my arms, glaring at the back of Jasper's head. "Hello to you too," I muttered. "But I'm not on my own, now am I? You're here, aren't you?"_

Xxx

"_Jasper, you must come to the hospital now," Esme muttered while Rosalie shifted nervously. "It's time."_


	18. Chapter 17: Trapped in a Box Without Air

**Disclaimer**: Nope, nothing's mine!

**A/N**: Hey, everybody! It's great to see so many reviews! I'm glad you're all liking this so much! The good news on my end is that I am on spring break right now, so I should be able to update frequently over this upcoming week. Also, "Ice Moon," the sequel to this one, is coming along nicely as well. So, that's good. Um, that's really all I have to say this time around, so enjoy this chapter, guys!

_Chapter 17- Trapped in a Box Without Air Holes_

I screamed when Jasper suddenly shoved me out of the way of the large wolf creature and hit the ground hard. I gasped in fear when I opened my eyes as I watched the wolf land on top of Jasper, its snapping jaws aiming for his throat. After another minute, Jasper snarled as he kicked the wolf in the stomach, sending it flying off of him. But the creature landed on its feet gracefully with a snarl of its own just as Jasper jumped to his feet and landed in an offensive crouch, a deep warning growl escaping from his throat. Then, they both lunged for each other for another attack.

When they collided, it sounded as though two boulders were crashing into each other and shattering on impact. I covered my face with my hands as tears fell from my eyes as I screamed again. No… Jasper… I _couldn't _let him be hurt… I _couldn't_. I had to stop this before I lost him. Besides, if my theory was correct, this wolf wouldn't hurt me…

Cautiously lowering my hands, I watched as Jasper landed on the ground directly in front of me in a protective stance while the large wolf landed a few feet away. With a threatening snarl, it lunged for Jasper, but he didn't move out of its way so he could still protect me…

"Jake, stop it!"

Going completely by my instinct and without thinking about what I was doing, I pushed myself to my feet and threw myself in front of Jasper, hugging him tightly. I started to sob freely since I could hear that the wolf was still in its charge, its dagger-like claws only inches away from me. But I was doing this for Jasper, which made it worth it…

So much for my theory. This was _not_ how I wanted to see Jacob again…

Suddenly, Jasper's arms wrapped protectively around me as he spun quickly around, and my heart broke when I heard his cry of pain when the wolf's claws slashed across his back. I looked up into Jasper's face, attempting to support him as he wavered a little and dropped to one knee. I buried my face into his chest as his arms still shielded me from this creature that I had considered to be my friend- kinda like Mike; annoying, but still a friend- wanting the fight to just end.

The wolf's snarls ended abruptly, and the only sound for a while were my sobs as Jasper continued to try to comfort me. But I knew that it would take a lot for me to calm down since I knew that it was my fault that Jasper was hurt. Being a vampire, I didn't think that it was possible for him to actually get injured like that, but apparently, a werewolf could do that. I just hadn't been thinking…

After another moment, Jasper and I both looked up when we heard footsteps approaching us, and I watched as Jacob Black took a couple of more steps toward us. "Ali…" he began hesitantly while Jasper's arms tightened around me protectively as he growled in warning.

"Let me go, Jasper," I muttered through my tears, breaking out of his arms and ignoring his look of shock as I rose to my feet to stand in front of Jacob. I had to take care of this.

"Ali, I'm sorry. I couldn't help it," he said quickly as he raised his hands in protest when I approached. "I thought he was going to hurt you. I-!"

"_Shut up_!" I screamed at him as more tears formed in my eyes and fell, and I did something that I never thought I would. I raised my right hand and slapped him with all the strength I could muster- which was a lot, considering I was running on adrenaline at the moment. Unfortunately, he didn't seem to even feel it, and I cried out in pain when all of my fingers throbbed painfully. After another moment, I realized that they had been dislocated. Well, there went my writing hand… "Stupid _werewolf_!"

Jasper was at my side in an instant when he realized that I was hurt, gently holding my four swelling fingers in his ice pack of a hand. Then, he raised his harsh gaze to glare at Jacob. "Get out of here… _now_!" he hissed with uncharacteristic ferocity. "I may be injured, mongrel, but I could still _kill_ you so easily…"

Jacob's expression faltered as he looked down at me, shaking and sobbing. "I'm sorry…"

"Just stay away from me!" I snapped viciously in a shaking voice, which was unusual for me as I leaned into Jasper's embrace. "You hurt Jasper. I don't want you anywhere near me!" My own fingers didn't even matter to me right now…

"You heard her," Jasper concluded quietly, and that was all the cementing that Jacob needed. Without a word, he turned away from us and disappeared into the trees, never looking back.

"Japer, I'm so, so sorry," I muttered through my tears once he was gone, running my good hand over the place on his back where Jacob's claws had been. "It's my fault that you were hurt… I wasn't thinking-!"

"No, Alice, it isn't," Jasper tried to assure me, stroking my hair comfortingly as he wiped away my tears. "Believe me when I say that it was better me than you. You could have been killed by that attack while I'll heal relatively quickly. But I do believe that we need to see Carlisle about your fingers."

I nodded, but a mischievous glint still appeared in my tear-filled eyes. "We will, as long as we ask him about those scratches."

Jasper smirked, seeing no way around it as he kissed my lips quickly. "Deal."

* * *

"You were lucky that these weren't at your throat, Jasper," Carlisle said, nodding to his son as he quickly slipped his shirt back on. "You'll heal quickly. But _you_, young lady, are a different story."

I looked up at Carlisle nervously as he stood in front of me, and Jasper wrapped his arms around me comfortingly. I scooted closer to him, grabbing his hand tightly with my uninjured one.

"It's good that you have someone to hold on to, Alice, because I'll be popping all four of your fingers back into place," Carlisle told me, but a small smile appeared on his face. "Jasper should have told you not to slap a werewolf."

"I'm sorry, I was angry," I muttered in my defense, not relaxed by Carlisle's teasing. I had definitely learned to never do that again. "So, um… are you going to do them all at once or one at a time?" I was very nervous.

"Well, that's your choice," Carlisle replied with a sigh as he sat in a chair in front of me and gently took my bruised, swollen hand in both of his. "I can do it either way, but I believe that it will be more painful for you if I do them all, though it will also be over faster. It's up to you."

Sighing, I looked down at my hand that Carlisle delicately held before moving my gaze up to Jasper's perfect face. "Um, one at a time, I think," I told Carlisle as Jasper looked back at me. "With the amount of pain from all four of them at once, I'll probably pass out."

Carlisle smiled at me apologetically. "All right then. Just know that I don't want to do this to you since it will be painful, but it's something that has to be done. Okay?"

I nodded, clutching Jasper's hand like a lifeline. "Hold her tightly, Jasper," Carlisle cautioned. "That would be best. It may not be a bad idea to make sure she doesn't watch either."

Jasper sighed and wrapped one arm around my waist tightly while he placed his other hand on my head, pushing it down so that my eyes were buried in his shoulder. "I'm right here, Alice," he whispered comfortingly in my ear. "It will be over soon, I promise."

"I'll be fine," I told Jasper with faltering determination. Hopefully, one of us could be confident because I surely wasn't.

"All right, then," Carlisle announced, taking my index finger between his. "On the count of three. One… two… three!"

I couldn't help but cry out by the sudden pain that attacked my finger as it was forced back into its socket, and tears instantly filled my eyes as Jasper's arms tightened around me. Carlisle then moved on to my next finger, and the same thing happened. By the end of my fourth finger, I was seeing spots dancing before my eyes as my tears stopped flowing.

"Are you all right, Alice?" Carlisle asked nervous when I didn't cry out when he popped in my last finger, holding my throbbing hand in between his cold ones, which felt _very _good. Like Jasper's had been to me before, it was like an ice pack.

But I couldn't answer him- I felt too lightheaded. I barely felt Jasper's cold fingers beneath my chin and gently lift my head up toward him, and I could see the alarm on his face at my dazed expression. "Alice?" he muttered nervously.

"I'm fine, Jasper," I whispered, but my eyes closed as my head lolled limply onto his shoulder, and I sunk into the welcoming darkness that had been calling to me.

* * *

"Is it normal for a human to… you know… do this?"

"Well, in her case, yes. Don't worry, Jasper. With the amount of physical trauma she just went through, the emotional trauma of watching you fight with Jacob, and the stress of Edward's illness, this is the body's natural way of recovering. She'll be just fine."

"Thanks, Carlisle."

There was a moment of silence between them before Carlisle spoke again. "How long has it been since you've hunted, Jasper," he asked. "Your eyes look darker today."

"A few days ago," Jasper answered quietly. "But don't worry. I'll be fine for a while yet."

Carlisle sighed. "Jasper, go hunt," he told him in a fatherly tone. "You really need it. I don't believe that anything will happen to Alice, no matter how much danger is drawn to her, in the short time you'll be gone. I will still be here. The farthest away that I will be is across the room from her while I check on Edward. Please."

After another moment of silence, Jasper sighed as well. "All right. I won't be gone for long," he muttered. "Keep an eye on her."

"I will." I could hear the conviction, and the smile, in Carlisle's voice.

A second later, I heard a door close, and I gasped silently when I felt a sharp pain stab my right hand. I groaned when my head began to clear as my eyes fluttered open, and I slowly looked around the room. "…Jasper…" I murmured, dreading how pleading and pathetic my voice sounded.

Literally in a second, Carlisle rushed over to my bed from where he had been standing across the room, and he sat down beside me. "Jasper has only gone to hunt and will be back shortly," he said with a smile, placing his hand on my head and ruffling my hair slightly in a playful manner. "Relax now, Alice."

I couldn't help but smile up at the man that I considered to be my father, but then I winced when my hand throbbed again. I looked down on it, seeing that all of my fingers, which were a brilliant shade of purple, had been taped securely together so that they wouldn't be moved during the healing process. Great…

"How are you feeling?" Carlisle asked with concern. "Would you like some aspirin to help with the pain?"

"Yes, please," I gasped. This was a new record for me. _Never_ had I hurt my whole hand at once before…

Carlisle immediately jumped up from the bed and went to a cupboard near the door of the room, quickly and effortlessly pulling out a bottle and dumping two pills into his hand before moving to the sink and filling a glass cup with water. "So, I hear from my staff meetings and lunches that the relationship between you and Jasper is a big deal," he teased as he sat down beside me again, placing the glass in my working left hand.

I blushed as I awkwardly took one aspirin at a time as Carlisle placed them in my taped-up hand and swallowed them. "Yeah, that's what I've been hearing, too…" I muttered in a disgruntled way as I handed the cup back to Carlisle.

"I never said that was a bad thing, Alice," Carlisle said with a laugh. "It's just that now that this has gone public, you'll both have to be very careful so this doesn't end badly."

"Badly as in… Jasper accidentally kills me?" I wondered hesitantly.

Carlisle's handsome face took on a dark expression as he looked away from me. "I don't believe that will happen," he told me quietly. "There's something about you, Alice, that drew Jasper to you. Though I'm not quite sure of what that something is, or even if he knows himself, it's powerful enough to keep him in control around you. He can't stand the thought of losing you, which is why he didn't want to get in a relationship with you since he thought that he would be a danger to you. He loves you, Alice, and it's a relief to finally see my son complete."

I didn't have anything to say in response to this since I had heard most of this from Jasper already, and there was a tense silence between us. But though I wasn't sure what it was, something in Carlisle's tone made me feel as though he knew more about Jasper's feelings for me than he was letting on…

Then, I sighed, deciding to ask a question that I was afraid to know the answer to. "How… how is Edward doing?"

"I was afraid that you would ask about that," Carlisle said heavily as he slowly, hesitantly met my gaze. "He's not doing so well. The fever settled in his system is taking quite a toll on him, and nothing I do seems to be working against it. I have never seen this before."

"Jasper mentioned to me that your options for him were limited," I muttered, carefully sitting up straighter in the bed so I wouldn't bump my hand as I wrapped my arms around my legs.

"Did… did he tell you what my final option was?"

I could only nod at Carlisle's question, not trusting my voice to work at that moment… not with the tears that had begun to brim in my eyes…

Then, I gasped with surprise when a cold hand landed on my arm, and I slowly raised my eyes to see that Carlisle was giving me a small smile. "Alice, listen to me. I will only resort to that option if there is absolutely no other way to save him," he told me quietly, yet there was so much force behind his gentle words that it was hard not to believe him. "But, since you are the only one who knows our secret and you are his sister, I will not go through with that final option unless I have your consent."

"My consent?" I repeated, to which Carlisle nodded. I sighed, thinking this new information over. Great. Now, I had to decide whether my brother was going to die or be turned into one of the living dead. At least with the second option, I would still have Edward… "I… I don't know…"

"It's all right, Alice," Carlisle said, leaning forward and quickly kissing the top of my head. "You have some time to decide yet. Edward still has some strength left in him, and I have a couple of more things I could try. Just make sure to let me know."

I nodded to show him that I understood. Then, I slowly looked over at the other side of the room, my gaze landing on the only other bed that was being occupied. "May I see him?" I asked in an uncertain mutter.

Carlisle nodded, gently grabbing my uninjured hand as he lifted me off the bed. Then, he walked me over to the other side of the room, gesturing for me to walk forward while he stayed a couple of feet behind me. I swallowed nervously as I looked back at him, but then I took the few steps I needed to reach the bed and see my brother.

My breath caught in my chest as I looked down at Edward. His face was very pale and was covered in a cold sweat, but other than that, he appeared to be sleeping peacefully in the rays of the afternoon sun. I raised a shaking hand and delicately ran my fingers through his honey-colored hair, afraid that I would break him if I touched him too hard. "Edward," I whispered, taking his hand in my left one as tears formed in my eyes. "I promise you that everything is going to be all right. And… I assure you that Carlisle will do _anything_ he has to do to make you better again." My last words left a dark feeling in my heart, for I knew that I had just sealed my brother's fate. At this realization, the tears that had formed in my eyes began to fall as a quiet sob escaped from me.

Carlisle, of course, knew what my statement had meant as well, and he was beside me in an instant. He placed his hands on my arms and gently pulled me away from Edward's bedside, leading me back to the bed that I had previously occupied and sitting me down, holding me as I continued to cry.

But then, his arms disappeared from around me and were immediately replaced with another, more familiar pair. I opened my eyes and slowly looked up, finding myself looking into Jasper's concerned face. But the thing that I noticed immediately was that his eyes were lighter now- a beautiful shade of gold.

"Jasper…" I murmured through my tears as I laid my head on his shoulder. He pulled me closer to him in an attempt to comfort me as another sob escaped from me.

"It's all right," Jasper told me gently, kissing the top of my head. "Everything will be all right. I promise."

After a moment of simply sitting in his arms, my tears stopped as I was finally calmed down- probably Jasper's doing. I slowly straightened up, but Jasper kept his arm around my waist in a comforting way. "Thank you," I said quietly, taking his hand in my left one.

Jasper smiled at me, tilting my head up before he kissed me tenderly. I wished it could have lasted a little longer though… "Here. I think you need some fresh air," he told me, gently pulling me to my feet as he stood up. I leaned against him, still feeling somewhat weak from my breakdown. Jasper smiled at me, but then he turned to his adoptive father. "Carlisle, keep us updated."

"I will," Carlisle assured us with a nod. "Just try to relax, all right, Alice?"

I nodded as Jasper said, "Thanks, Carlisle." Then, with Jasper leading me along, I left the room with a longing glance back at Edward… knowing that this was the probably the last time that I would ever see him human.

* * *

The rest of my day was spent with Jasper and only Jasper. No one else seemed to want to approach us since Jasper would give everyone a warning look when they tried to come near. I really appreciated this. I didn't want to be with anyone else but him right now.

But then, when Jasper and I were in the mess hall for dinner with Emmett and Rosalie- Bella was staying in the hospital with Edward- Jasper's small, silver phone suddenly rang.

"Hello?" he asked.

I watched him intently, hoping to pick up something that would give me a clue as to who was calling him and why. But I had no success. Jasper's face was an emotionless mask as he listened carefully to whoever was on the other end. "All right. I'll be right there."

Jasper stood up from beside me then as he shut the phone and put it back in his pocket, and I had to fight the urge to reach out for him. "I'm sorry, but I have to go, Alice," he whispered to me. "I'll see you later." He kissed me gently, running his hand through my hair before he quickly left the mess hall and didn't return.

I suddenly felt very alone with Jasper gone, and ignoring Rosalie an Emmett's looks of concern, I put my head down on my arms as angry tears once again formed in my eyes.

* * *

I lay on the top bunk in the cabin I shared with Rosalie and Bella, merely staring up at the ceiling above me. I hadn't seen Jasper for the rest of the day since his abrupt exit from the mess hall, and with my growing worry for Edward, I felt this emptiness inside of me, gnawing viciously away at me. I had never felt more hopeless before… Like seriously, it was almost as if I was trapped in my own little box that barely fit me with no air holes in it that was suffocating me and had no possible way out. With Jasper with me, it wasn't so hard to deal with since he was almost like- to risk sounding cheesy- the air holes that I needed to breathe. But now that he had suddenly disappeared, the box was slowly starting to close up again…

"I don't know why Emmett told me to read this," Rosalie muttered, placing the _Spiderman_ comic book that he had let her borrow on the bed next to her. "I don't understand what it is with you humans and dressing people up to be superheroes. I could kick this spider guy's ass…"

Her teasing trailed off when she saw that I hadn't even moved in response to her words. She sighed, and I heard her slowly get to her feet and approach the bunk bed. "Alice, are you all right?" Rosalie asked, climbing up onto the top bunk beside me with ease. She had to lean a little so she wouldn't hit her head on the ceiling, though I doubted it would have made much of a difference. If they would happen to collide, the cabin ceiling would have suffered more damage than Rosalie's head.

I slowly looked over at her, and Rosalie sighed when she saw my blank expression. "Edward will be fine," she assured me. "And if it should happen to come down to it, Carlisle is the perfect man to do the transformation. He did it with Esme, Bella, and I, so I believe that Edward will be just fine. And even though Jasper wasn't turned by him, Carlisle was able to transition him to this new lifestyle."

At the mention of Jasper's name, tears formed in my eyes, and I had to quickly blink them away. I was still missing him terribly…

Seeing my tears, Rosalie placed her hand on my arm comfortingly. "I'm sorry to say that I don't know where that brother of mine went off to," she muttered with an eyeroll. "Normally I do. I mean, I know him well enough after our one hundred some years of existence…"

That statement actually made me laugh a little, and a small smile appeared on Rosalie's face. But then, her eyes darkened with worry. "Just… just promise me that you'll be careful with my brother, all right, Alice?"

I knew that she was only concerned about my safety with Jasper, but I knew that was one thing she didn't have to be worried about. But, just to put her mind at rest… "Sure, Rose. I promise," I told her quietly.

"Thank you, Alice." Rosalie's eyes then flitted to the stuffed bat that I was hugging close to me and then to the stuffed wolf that was now sitting on top of one of my bags at the end of my bed. "I see that you're down to only one stuffed animal."

"Yeah, I just felt like one for a change," I shrugged casually. After another minute, I looked over at the electric clock to check the time. Seeing that it was only a little after nine, I decided that it would be all right to go through with my idea. "Hey, I'm going to go for a quick walk, all right, Rose?"

"Sure." Rosalie seemed to be surprises at my sudden change in attitude. "Let me just get my shoes on and-!"

"Um, I'd rather go alone if that's all right," I interrupted gently, sitting up and jumping down from the top bunk. "I just need some time to clear my head."

Rosalie jumped down after me, following me over to the small mat we had set up to put our shoes on when we weren't wearing them. "Alice, right now, it's not the best idea to leave you alone," she told me, crossing her arms as she leaned against the wall next to me. "And since Jasper isn't here to fulfill his duties, that would be my job."

"Well, how long has it been since you've actually seen the tracker?" I asked as I quickly slipped my shoes on. When Rosalie didn't answer, a sly smile spread across my face. "Exactly. Don't worry, Rosalie. I'm sure I'll be fine. Besides, it's not like any of you guys won't be able to reach me quickly enough if something _should_ happen right?"

Though she clearly didn't like the idea, Rosalie sighed. "All right, fine," she muttered with a disgruntled tone. "Just be back soon. Otherwise, Jasper will kill me."

I gave her a smile of my own. "Don't worry. I will. And I'll tell Jasper that it was my fault, not yours, next time I see him." Then, I opened the door of the cabin and stepped out into the night, shutting it behind me again.

I walked down the sandy path that led away from the girl cabins, quickening my pace once I was surrounded by dense trees. It was dark even though there was an almost full moon, and I was feeling uncomfortable. Not necessarily like I was being watched, just uncomfortable. Before I knew it, I was walking across the parking lot and heading toward the lake. I'm not exactly sure why I was heading there, especially since it had almost killed me, but I felt as though there was something pulling me in that direction. Instead of fighting it, I decided to let it lead me, and once I got to the top of the hill that went down to the lake, I realized what had drawn me there.

A soft, gentle melody being played on the guitar floated up to me, and a broad smile appeared on m y face when I saw Jasper sitting at the edge of the lake, staring blankly out at the peaceful water as he played. I hurried down the hill toward where he was sitting, but I stopped when he suddenly addressed me without looking back at me as the melody continued.

"You shouldn't be walking about on your own at night, you know."

I frowned and crossed my arms, glaring at the back of Jasper's head. "Hello to you too," I muttered. "But I'm not on my own now, am I? You're here, aren't you?"

Jasper didn't say anything to that, so I sighed. "What are you thinking about?" I asked, remembering that something was on his mind when Jasper played his guitar.

At my quiet question, Jasper stopped playing and turned to look back at me. "I'm just… thinking about what will happen if Carlisle should have to turn Edward… and the effect it will have on you," he answered just as quietly, setting his guitar down on the ground beside him. "It won't be easy."

"Is that where you were earlier? With Carlisle?" When he nodded silently in answer, I sighed again, taking a couple of more steps to cover the distance between us before sitting in his lap, occupying the space his guitar once had. "No, it won't be easy," I agreed, resting my head against his shoulder while he wrapped his cold, strong arms around me. "But you'll be with me, won't you?"

Jasper leaned down and kissed my throat. "Of course, my love," he whispered against my neck. "I wouldn't dare leave you during that."

It was the first time that he had called me anything but my name, and the way he said "my love" when he allowed his Southern accent to slip in a little made my heart flutter. I raised my gaze up to meet his, our lips only inches apart. But before we closed the small gap between us, a playful smile appeared on my face. "Who would win in a fight between Rosalie and Spiderman?"

"Spiderman? That comic book superhero who swings from webs after being bitten by a radioactive spider?" Jasper wondered. When I nodded, he smirked. "Rosalie for sure. She would kick his ass."

That made me laugh a little since I remembered that Rosalie had made the same comment, but then, Jasper slowly leaned forward and closed the gap as our lips met. It wasn't our longest kiss-it wasn't our shortest either- but I could tell that there was something still bothering him. Before I could ask him what was wrong, however, he suddenly looked up at the top of the hill. I followed his gaze, and I was startled to see that Esme and Rosalie were looking down at us, both appearing anxious.

"Jasper, you must come to the hospital now," Esme muttered while Rosalie shifted nervously. "It's time."

**A/N**: Well, there you go. There's that chapter. By the way, I have had one of my fingers dislocated once, and it hurts terribly to get it popped back into place. I was a little girl at the time, but I remember it clearly. Poor Alice. I don't even want to imagine what it's like to have four of them dislocated… And as I said in the beginning author's note, I should be able to have frequent updates this week since I'm on spring break. Let's hope! Thanks for reading, guys! Your reviews are much appreciated! And… enjoy the preview!

**Next Chapter**: _Breaching the Treaty_

_Then, I gasped, tearing my eyes away from my brother as I looked up at Jasper when I felt him suddenly tense around me, and I was startled to see that his eyes were shut tightly and his face was contorted into a look of pain. "Jasper, what's wrong?" I asked anxiously, placing my left hand on his cheek. He instantly grabbed it tightly. "Jasper?"_

"_Alice…" he whispered as he began to lean heavier on the bed rail._

Xxx

_But then, Edward's dark eyes landed on me._

_And all Hell broke loose._

Xxx

_"Alice, do you remember in Sam's story the first night of camp when he talked about an agreement?" When I nodded, he sighed again. "When I made that agreement with the tribe, I promised that we would not kill or change a human into one of us. I've broken that treaty to save your brother, Alice, fully knowing the consequences."_

Xxx

_But now, because of what they did to save Edward, they were all about to be taken away._


	19. Chapter 18: Breaching the Treaty

**Disclaimer**: Nope, only the idea is mine, not the characters.

**A/N**: OMG! A little Albert Einstein just appeared on the Word document instead of the annoying little paperclip guy! It's awesome! Has anyone else's done that? Lol, anyway… As you can probably tell, I'm on spring break. And, the best scenario has happened. I finished all of the homework that my teachers gave me this weekend, so I have this whole week completely free! Which, in theory, should mean frequent updates for this story! I hope you all had a wonderful Easter (if you celebrate)! Here's your present! Thank you so much for all of your reviews! I appreciate them all! It's great to see new reviewers too! So, alrighty, then. Let's get on to the next chapter, shall we?

_Chapter 18- Breaching the Treaty_

"What did Esme mean when she said, _it's time_?" I asked nervously as Jasper ran in the direction of the hospital with Esme and Rosalie ahead of us. He was holding me in his arms while I had my arms wrapped tightly around his neck, my eyes shut tightly since I didn't think I could handle watching his running speed yet.

Jasper hesitated in his answer, almost as if he was trying to find the right words… or soften their impact. "It means that… that there is no other option left," he answered softly. "There's only one more thing that Carlisle can do for Edward now."

Realizing what he meant, I placed my head on Jasper's shoulder, but no tears fell. By this point, I was all cried out since I've been doing that so much lately…

We soon reached the hospital building, and Jasper set me down on the ground. I wavered slightly since I wasn't used to the inhuman speed yet, and Jasper caught my arm to steady me. He gave me a small smile that was still uncertain before he opened the door and gestured for me to go inside. I sighed and slowly entered the dark waiting room with Jasper behind me, and I jumped slightly when I felt his cold arm wrap around my shoulders.

"Come on," he whispered to me, leading me toward the door that opened to the room where Carlisle cared for all of his patients. "It'll be all right."

"If you're sure…" I leaned against him and wrapped my arm around his back as we walked, holding my breath nervously when Jasper opened the door and walked inside.

They were all there on the far side of the room- Carlisle and Bella were standing on either side of the bed, the latter holding my brother's hand in hers, while Rosalie and Esme stood a little farther away, their watchful eyes on my brother intently. Jasper pulled me over to them, but he stood farther away than even his mother and sister as he leaned back against the bed on the opposite wall. Wanting to see my brother one last time, I broke away from him and cautiously walked forward, stepping past Rosalie and Esme to stand at the end of the bed. When I saw Edward, I gasped in horror.

With my human eyes, it didn't even seem as though Edward was alive. His face was extremely pale and he was lying _so_ still… But I suppose that he had to still be alive, or else we all wouldn't be here right now, about to turn him into a… a vampire…

Carlisle raised his head to look over at me. "Alice… are you sure that this is what you want me to do?" he asked so quietly I almost didn't hear him. "Is this your choice?"

I slowly turned to look back at him, my gaze faltering slightly as I whispered my answer. "Yes."

"All right," Carlisle sighed. "Then you may want to go stand back by Jasper. Though Edward is your brother, his immediate thirst for human blood will be extremely difficult to control, and he will be stronger than any of us since he will be a newborn. We will try our best to restrain him, but…"

"He will not touch her," Jasper said darkly from behind me, a low growl escaping from his throat.

I slowly glanced over my shoulder at Jasper before looking back at Carlisle and finally down at Edward, swallowing nervously when I realized what was possibly going to happen to me, despite Jasper's conviction. I remembered him telling me about some of his past in dealing with newborns, and seeing the scars that he had been permanently left with. "O… okay…" I slowly backed away from the bed, walking backwards until Jasper's arms wrapped around me from behind as he pulled me close to him and held me tightly in a protective manner.

Carlisle looked over at Bella. "Ready?" he asked quietly. When Bella nodded in answer and tightened her hold on Edward's hand slightly, Carlisle moved his hesitant gaze down to my brother. He slowly leaned down toward him, stopping inches above him as he closed his eyes for a minute. Then, Carlisle's eyes suddenly snapped open as he closed the gap between them faster than I could see, his teeth clamping down on Edward's neck.

Just as I had seen in my vision, Edward's eyes flew open as he cried out in pain when Carlisle put his venom into his system. After a moment, Carlisle pulled pack away from my brother while he writhed in pain on the bed, a tortured look in his golden eyes, while Esme hurried over to her husband and put her arms around him comfortingly.

Then, I gasped, tearing my eyes away from my brother as I looked up at Jasper when I felt him suddenly tense around me, and I was startled to see that his eyes were shut tightly and his face was contorted into a look of pain. "Jasper, what's wrong?" I asked anxiously, placing my left hand on his cheek. He instantly grabbed it tightly. "Jasper?"

"Alice…" he whispered as he began to lean heavier on the bed rail.

"He feels the pain of the transformation going on inside of Edward," Rosalie explained, suddenly appearing next to us as she placed her hand on her brother's shoulder in a comforting manner. "Come on, Jasper, let's have a seat."

I helped Rosalie lead Jasper over to the side of the bed, sitting down on either side of him as we gently pushed him down. His hand never loosened from around mine as he continued to tense…

Suddenly, Edward gave a louder cry of pain than before, and tears formed in my eyes from hearing that and from hearing the soft whimper that escaped from Jasper since he was struggling to hide most of the pain he was going through. The transformation must have been reaching its peak, which meant that it would be over soon… at least, I hoped so. I pulled Jasper's head down so that it was resting on my shoulder, and I held him tightly as a few tears silently fell from my eyes.

"It will be all right, Jasper," I whispered soothingly, hoping that I was at least helping him somewhat. "I'm here. It's going to be all right."

Rosalie gave me a small smile as she looked over her shoulder at her adoptive parents. "Carlisle, how much longer will this go on?" she asked, tightly holding her brother's hand. By the sound of it, she was also very nervous…

"Not much longer," Carlisle answered, looking at Jasper with worry before looking back at Edward and Bella, who was tightly holding his hand, as he placed his hand on my brother's head. "It should be almost done."

"Almost done" took an agonizingly long time. But finally, Edward's cries died off, and Jasper collapsed weakly onto me for only a split second before slowly raising his head off my shoulder to meet my anxious gaze. "Thank you, Alice," he told me quietly, wiping the stray tears away as his strength began to return.

I smiled back at him, tightening my grasp on his hand as I leaned forward and met his lips in a soft kiss. "Of course," I answered before he gently pulled my lips to his again.

Then, Carlisle and Esme stepped closer to Edward's bed while Rosalie joined Bella at the other side, and Jasper and I turned to see what was now going to happen. When no one said a word, I slowly got to my feet and hesitantly walked toward Edward's bed with Jasper right behind me, sticking very close. I gasped quietly when I felt as though I was looking at my brother for the first time. I hardly recognized him- he didn't even seem to be the same person. His skin was pale, almost the color of alabaster, and it appeared as though all of his features had been amplified to make him more handsome. The thing that startled me the most, though, was that his eyes were pitch black.

He seemed to be confused as he looked around at all of the faces looking anxiously down at him, almost as if he was seeing them and everything around him for the first time through new eyes. But then, Edward's dark eyes landed on me.

And all Hell broke loose.

I screamed as Edward ripped his hand out of Bella's and easily pushed past Rosalie, Carlisle, and Esme as they tried to restrain him, his intense eyes only on me as he lunged for my throat. I backed away a little, but I knew that it would do no good…

Suddenly, Jasper was in front of me, tensing as he held Edward back. I stumbled back and fell to the floor, watching with fear as my brother continued to try to get past Jasper with snapping jaws. He truly looked like… like a _monster_.

"Edward, stop!" Jasper said fiercely, struggling to keep the newborn vampire that had completely taken over Edward at bay. "Alice is your sister! Remember that!"

But Edward seemed to be beyond all reason as he fought to get past Jasper. I knew that Carlisle said newborns were stronger than vampires who had been around longer, but my boyfriend and brother seemed to be at least evenly matched. From what I knew about Jasper's past, he had the experience of dealing with newborns behind him. But the only thing different this time was that he didn't want to hurt Edward…

Suddenly, Edward lunged forward and sunk his teeth into Jasper's forearm. I winced when Jasper hissed in pain, and then I screamed when my brother grabbed him by the neck and forcefully flung him away. I watched with horror as Jasper flew across the room and hit the door, breaking it clean off its hinges as he went through it. "Jasper!"

But then, my gaze quickly moved back to my brother, who now towered over me. I scooted back against the bed behind me, curling in on myself as I looked up at the monster before me. This wasn't Edward… this wasn't the brother I loved…

"Stop it, Edward!"

At the sound of the new voice, Edward gasped quietly as he watched Bella step in front of him, shaking slightly. When he saw the fear and sadness in her eyes, his intense gaze softened, and he slowly raised his hand and placed it gently on her cheek. Bella gently placed her hand on his raised arm as she gave him a small smile, and then Edward slowly pulled her into his arms and held her tightly while she wrapped her arms around him, placing his nose by her neck in her hair. My eyes widened when I realized that he was trying to ignore the pull from the smell of my blood.

Carlisle sighed with relief as he slowly approached Edward and put his hand on his shoulder. "Keep her close, Edward," he told him quietly. "That will help."

"I will," Edward muttered, his voice cracking as though it was dry. _That_ was more like the brother I knew. It was a relief to me to know that he was still in there somewhere.

Then, Carlisle left Edward's side and knelt down in front of me as I slowly started to uncurl, Rosalie and Esme staying close to my brother… just in case. "Are you all right, Alice?" he asked gently.

I could only nod in answer, but then a panicked look crossed my face. "Jasper… how's Jasper?"

"I'm fine, Alice. Don't worry."

Jasper was at my side in an instant, looking up at Edward warily as I threw my arms around him out of both fear and relief while he only placed his right arm around me, not his left, since he was holding that once close to him. Something was wrong…

"Let me see your arm, Jasper," Carlisle suddenly said.

"Oh, it's fine, Carlisle," Jasper replied, shrugging off whatever was bothering him casually. "It's no big deal…"

"Jasper, let me see your arm," Carlisle repeated in a stern yet fatherly tone. His worry for him was clear.

Seeing no other way around it, Jasper sighed as he rolled up the sleeve covering his left arm to reveal the skin. Carlisle and I both looked over it, but he must have seen something that I didn't with his vampire eyesight because he delicately touched a very faint crescent-shaped mark on his arm. Jasper hissed with what must have been pain again before rolling the sleeve back down to cover up the mark.

"Just be cautious of that bite for a while, Jasper," Carlisle muttered before he got back to his feet. Jasper nodded, returning his full attention to me as he held me close to him.

"Carlisle, I'm going to take Edward to a woodland area away from the campsite to hunt," Bella muttered from Edward's arms.

"Good idea," Carlisle told her. "Take as long as you need to."

Bella nodded, moving out of Edward's embrace as she took his hand tightly in hers. "Come on, Edward," she whispered, pulling him after her as she quickly left the room before he could catch the scent of my blood again.

"He knows, doesn't he?" I asked quietly as Jasper and I slowly stood up once my brother was gone. "Edward knows he's a vampire." The second part wasn't a question- it was a statement.

"Yes," Carlisle answered me with a nod. "There were times where Edward was conscious and Bella would tell him what was going to happen. He wasn't happy about it since he didn't want to become a monster, but I'm sure he'll be fine with her to guide him. Did you know that they actually made their relationship official while she sat at his bedside?"

For the first time since Edward had collapsed earlier that day, a broad smile spread across my face. So, Bella and my brother were finally together. It was about time…

Then, my cell phone suddenly rang from my pocket. I quickly pulled it out, not recognizing the number, but I answered it anyway. It could have been an emergency or something. "Hello?"

My eyes widened with fear as the color drained from my face when I heard a soft, yet taunting laugh on the other end. _"So, I see your brother has been turned into one of us now too, huh, my little Alice?" _a man said. It sounded so familiar… _"Well, even with him, they still won't be enough to protect you, even with your boyfriend constantly watching over you."_

"Wh-who is this?" I asked shakily, my eyes darting around with panic. Jasper's arms tightened around my waist, but that wasn't even enough to distract me from the haunting voice. "How do you know me? Who are you?!" My voice rose to a shout as my anxiety rose.

"_Don't be afraid, Alice. I'm just a friend. You will find out what you want to know soon enough. I'll see you soon, my dear. Sweet dreams."_ Then, he began to laugh again.

Before I could reply, Jasper snatched the phone from my hand and brought it to his ear. "Who is this?" he demanded harshly. But he sighed and flipped the phone closed before handing it back to me. "They hung up."

"Who was it, honey?" Esme wondered, her eyes filled with concern.

"I… I don't know," I told her truthfully as I put the phone back in my pocket. "He's called me once before, but I didn't have my phone on me, so he left a message. This is the first time I've actually talked to him."

"Well, I'm sure it's nothing to worry about," Rosalie said in an attempt to make me feel better. "We'll keep an eye out for anything strange, though. You don't have to worry about a thing."

Her statement made me feel somewhat more relaxed, but not much. I turned to Jasper, standing up on my toes so that I could talk in his ear. "Please don't leave me tonight," I begged in a whisper. "I'm nervous about this man that's calling me…"

Jasper smiled down at me, kissing me tenderly before pulling me close to him. "I won't, Alice," he promised quietly, gently stroking my hair. "I'll stay with you at your cabin tonight. I won't leave you." He then glanced at his twin. "Are you going to Emmett's to keep an eye on him then?"

Rosalie nodded. "If you're staying with Alice."

"I am."

"Then, yeah, I'll go to Emmett's."

Jasper nodded, his wary eyes traveling to Rosalie to Carlisle, to Esme as he took a deep breath. The atmosphere of the room was suddenly much tenser than it had been a moment ago. "I'm going to bring Alice back to her cabin before…"

"That would be best," Carlisle agreed, knowing what Jasper was going to say though his sentence had trailed off. "Hurry and go now."

"You're too late, Jasper," Rosalie suddenly said as she rushed to the window, looking back at him with anger in her eyes. "They're already here."

"Who's here?" I asked nervously.

A deep, angry growl resounded from Jasper's throat as he released me. "I'm going out there to keep them at bay," he muttered fiercely, heading toward the doorway that led out of the room. "I'll hold them off for as long as I can while you get Alice out of here."

"I'm going with you," Rosalie said, quickly running after her brother. "You can't face them on your own."

I was suddenly filled with a deep worry for both twins. Who were they going to be meeting out there alone? I couldn't let anything happen… "Jasper, wait!" I cried, taking a cautious step after him.

Jasper sighed as he paused in the doorway, slowly turning to look back at me while Rosalie did the same. "I love you, Alice," he whispered, and the words sent a knife through me. "Always remember that." Then, he left the room with Rosalie behind him.

"Both of you be very careful!" Carlisle shouted after them, and it was clear that he was filled with worry for his children. Then, he turned to his wife as he took her hand, his eyes filled with anxiety. "Esme, why don't you stay in here with Alice and wait for the right moment to bring her back to her cabin? I'll try to work things out here as peacefully as I can, but…"

"Of course, Carlisle," Esme said quietly, pulling me close to her. "Of course." I noticed immediately that she was very tense as well.

"What's happening?" I asked impatiently from Esme's arms. "Will someone please explain to me what's going on?" I hated being the only one not knowing something important.

Carlisle sighed heavily. "Alice, do you remember in Sam's story the first night of camp when he talked about an agreement?" When I nodded, he sighed again. "When I made that agreement with the tribe, I promised that we would not kill or change a human into one of us. I've broken that treaty to save your brother, Alice, fully knowing the consequences. We'll take it away from the campsite, but there will most likely be a fight stated where the wolves will want to wipe one of us out for what I have done. It's part of the agreement."

I felt all the color drain from my face as my heart nearly stopped when I heard Carlisle's words. _No_! This couldn't be happening! I understood the importance of the treaty since the wolves considered themselves to be the protectors of humans, but Carlisle didn't change Edward just for the hell of it. He changed him _to_ protect him… to keep him from dying. And now, since that treaty was breached…

I thought of Esme, who held me tightly, so sweet and gentle… Carlisle, who had such great compassion for every living being even if they didn't return it… Bella, my best friend and sister, who was away and had no idea what was going to happen here tonight… Rosalie, who was full of attitude and so quick-witted… and Jasper, the love of my life and the very core of my existence. They were my family now, the most important people in my life.

But now, because of what they had done to safe Edward, they were all about to be taken away.

**A/N**: I'm sorry that this chapter's a bit shorter than the rest, but I thought it would be best to give this part it's own chapter. And since I'm on spring break, I'll probably be able to update in the next couple of days, so no worries there. Thanks for reading, guys! Your reviews are much appreciated. And, here's the next preview!

**Next Chapter**: _Confrontation_

_Esme nodded. She appeared to be crying, but no tears were falling from her eyes. She approached Carlisle and hugged him tightly. "I love you," she whispered._

"_I love you too." Carlisle then tilted Esme's head up and kissed her._

Xxx

_But Jasper still didn't seem convinced, and he placed his arm around my waist and pulled me out of Carlisle's arm to hold me close to his side. Jacob growled angrily when he saw this, and Jasper snarled fiercely in return._

Xxx

_"I should have known that you would break the treaty sooner or later, Cullen. Deep down, you're all the same. It was only a matter of time."_

Xxx

_"We don't need your protection," Jasper snapped quietly._

_"Then it's a good thing that you're not the ones getting our protection," Sam replied coolly. "We wouldn't want to waste our efforts."_

_"We're wasting our efforts already protecting_ her_."_

Xxx

_"I think it's kind of sweet in a way, how one of the world's most feared predators fell in love with a human. It shows that Sam's wrong and they really do have a heart."_

Xxx

_Jasper sighed as he slowly raised his hand and placed it on my cheek. "You won't lose me, Alice," he told me. "As long as you need me, I will be here in some form or another."_

_I reached up and placed my hand over the hand he had put on my cheek. "I want that form to be_ alive_."_


	20. Chapter 19: Confrontation

**Disclaimer**: They all belong to Stephenie Meyer.

**A/N**: Yep, I'm back! I just made sour cream and onion dip, and it turned out amazing! Lol. One of the few things I can actually make in the kitchen without it being a complete disaster. But, since you guys are so amazing, here's the next chapter! I think I have dinner plans with my brother today, so I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to get this up. Thankfully, I can! Just a note about Edward's transformation- it might have happened fast, but he still has to completely get through it and transition to the lifestyle. That will take longer. And now, so I can avoid any pipe cutters, here's my next update! Let's hope things go over well for our favorite vamps, huh?

_Chapter 19- Confrontation_

"A _fight_?!" I was horrified. "No! You guys can't do this!"

"I'm sorry, Alice," Carlisle said simply and quietly, pulling me close to him in a hug while I clung to the man I considered to be my father tightly. "I had hoped that you would have been able to leave before this happened, but just know that we all love you."

Tears rushed to my eyes, and I struggled to try to hold them back as Carlisle released me and turned to the woman beside me. "Esme, listen. I want you to keep Alice safe in here. If things with the wolves go badly, take her and run. Get as far away from here as you can. Find Bella and Edward and continue moving. It doesn't matter where you go, just find someplace were the wolves won't find you."

Esme nodded. She appeared to be crying, but no tears were falling from her eyes. She approached Carlisle and hugged him tightly. "I love you," she whispered.

"I love you too." Carlisle then tilted Esme's head up and kissed her.

That's when my tears began to fall. I had never seen Carlisle and Esme show signs of the love that they clearly had for each other like this, and it drove the point home that some of the members of my vampire family weren't going to make it through this night. Jasper… Rosalie… Carlisle… Esme… Who would live… and who would die?

I couldn't stand that thought…

"Carlisle, I'm going out there with you," I suddenly stated firmly.

"What?" Carlisle turned to look at me as he broke the kiss with Esme, still holding her close to him. "Alice, don't be ridiculous…"

"I'm not," I told him. "I just can't help but feel that I'm somewhat responsible for this mess. I'm the one that made the decision for you to change Edward. The wolves don't want to hurt me, Carlisle. Maybe I could even help you negotiate."

But Carlisle shook his head fiercely. "No, Alice," he said firmly in a tone that made it clear that he wasn't going to debate my idea. "There is no way that I'm going to risk your safety."

I was about to protest, but someone beat me to it. "Carlisle, I think that Alice may be right," Esme suddenly said softly. "She may be able to help. Hasn't one of the wolves even imprinted on her? The last thing they would want to do is hurt her."

To my immense relief, it appeared as though Carlisle was actually considering my idea. "Well… all right," he finally muttered. "Alice, it's very important that you stay close to my side at all times. Understood?" I nodded, and Carlisle turned to his wife. "Esme, stay in here. If things end up going badly, I still want you to run and find Bella and Edward and keep yourself safe. Come on, Alice."

I glanced behind me at Esme one last time before Carlisle pulled me to him, watching as she hurried to the window to look out at her children. Then, we entered the waiting room, quickly walking through it before leaving the hospital. He led me around to the back of the building, and I gasped at what I saw.

Jasper was standing before Sam and Jacob and another very tall boy that I didn't know by name while Rosalie faced the only girl from the group along with the boy that looked as though he was her brother and another shorter, rounder boy. It only took one glance to see that the most tension was coming from Jasper and Jacob. Thankfully, all the La Push teens were in their human forms for now, but once they changed into wolves, six of them versus only three of my vampire family were _not_ good odds…

At the sound of Carlisle and my approaching footsteps, Jacob looked up and a broad smile appeared on his face. "Ali!" he exclaimed cheerfully.

"Carlisle, what are you doing?!" Jasper demanded, his intense eyes on me as Carlisle brought me over to him and Rosalie. "You know what's going to happen here!"

"Calm down, Jasper," Carlisle said, raising his hand that didn't occupy my shoulder in a hopefully calming manner. "I only brought her because the wolves won't hurt her. Besides, she may be able to prevent what's going to happen."

But Jasper still didn't seem convinced, and he placed his arm around my waist and pulled me out of Carlisle's arm to hold me close to his side. Jacob growled angrily when he saw this, and Jasper snarled fiercely in return. In response to Jasper's ferocity, I watched as the girl from La Push began to walk forward angrily. Rosalie stepped in front of us protectively, but the other girl only smirked as she paused.

"Step aside, Princess," she sneered. "You wouldn't want to break a nail, would you?"

Rosalie growled, but she was stopped from doing anything more by Jasper's quiet warning of, "Rose."

"It's all right, Jasper," Rosalie replied with a smirk of her own. "I've been wanting to fight her for some time. I mean, the worst she can do is bark."

The girl from the reservation snarled angrily while Rosalie returned it, and Jasper turned his attention back to Jacob as he held me tighter to him when he began to advance. No… The fight couldn't be starting…

"Enough!" Sam suddenly shouted, and everyone turned their attention to him as he took a couple of steps forward. One dark look sent Jacob and the girl back to the half circle they had formed. "I should have known that you would break the treaty sooner or later, Cullen. Deep down, your kind is all the same. It was only a matter of time."

"And because you have shown how dangerous you truly are, I think that it would be best if we took Alice out of your hands," Jacob added, his eyes shining almost triumphantly. Jasper growled as he pulled me closer, and I clung to him tightly, Rosalie stepping even closer to us. I didn't want to leave the Cullens…

"No one is taking anyone from anyone else," Carlisle stated firmly, moving to stand before Jasper and I. "Alice is perfectly safe with my son, and _no_ one is going to take that happiness away from them." His flaming eyes were mainly on Jacob as he spoke, and I was just relieved that he was so protective and supportive of us.

"Yes, I broke the treaty by changing a human into one of us," Carlisle continued, his attention now on Sam. "But I did not do it without a reason. Edward is Alice's brother, and he was very, very ill with a strange fever. He was dying, and even though I tried everything medically possible, nothing was working against it. Changing him was my final resort. I was not about to let him die."

"That's some story, Cullen," Sam said quietly. "It must have taken some time to come up with it."

I knew that I had to speak now or risk losing someone that I loved. I couldn't let that happen. This was the reason I was out here. It was now or never. "No, it's true," I protested in Carlisle's defense, and every pair of eyes turned to me. I took a deep breath as I pulled away from Jasper, standing on my toes to kiss his cheek for courage before walking forward past Carlisle to face the wolves. "Carlisle wouldn't have changed Edward if I wouldn't have given him my consent to. If you have to blame someone for what happened, blame me. It was my word that allowed for Carlisle to do what he did. Please, he was just trying to save my brother's life." There was a thin line of tears in my eyes at this point, but my voice surprisingly didn't waver.

At my statement, Sam and Jacob both walked forward to stand directly in front of me, and I swallowed nervously since they towered over me completely. Then, they both leaned down close to me- Jacob a little closer and longer than Sam- and sniffed, almost as if they were trying to figure out if I was telling the truth or not by my scent. Hey, dogs could smell fear, so why not deceit?

"It seems that you are telling the truth, Alice," Sam finally stated, a comment that made Jacob frown with disappointment. I figured that he would love to have any excuse to fight Jasper again. But then, he turned to me, and his gaze softened. I looked back at him, surprised to see that he almost looked concerned. I knew that he was only worried about my safety with Jasper and that he had imprinted on me, but hadn't Jasper said something about imprinting fitting the situation? Couldn't that mean Jacob could just be a friend to me? I wouldn't mind that…

Then, Sam raised his gaze to Carlisle. "Since you changed a human to save his life, especially since he is Alice's brother, I suppose we could overlook it this time. But we will be keeping a much closer eye on you from now on in case you should slip up again. And I can guarantee that we won't be as easy on you next time."

The girl from the tribe appeared angry that she didn't get the chance to fight at least with Rosalie and that my family was getting off easily, and I could almost feel the relief coming form the three vampires behind me. But I knew that most of us gathered here could breathe easier now.

"I assume that our plan involving the tracker will stay the same?" Carlisle asked.

"Yes," Sam answered. "But only because it is Alice that we are protecting, not your family."

"We don't need your protection," Jasper snapped quietly.

"Then it's a good thing that you're not the ones getting our protection," Sam replied coolly. "We wouldn't want to waste our efforts."

"We're wasting our efforts already protecting _her_," the girl who had been confronting Rosalie earlier said. "She's just a human who means nothing to me…"

At her statement, both Jasper and Jacob growled angrily at her. But she didn't seem to notice as she put her nose in the air and quickly turned on her heel, disappearing into the trees. The really tall boy and the rounder boy immediately went after her, shortly followed by Sam. Jacob looked back at me and gave me a small smile before he went after him, but the boy who appeared to be the youngest of the group surprisingly came over to me.

"Don't mind Leah," he muttered. "I know she can be mean and conceded sometimes, but that's just the way my sister is. She doesn't like any girl, especially if they catch Jacob's attention."

So, this boy really was related to that girl named Leah. I had thought so… "Well, that's all right," I replied. "I don't exactly know why I caught Jacob's attention anyway. Something about imprinting, I guess… But, hey, if you're friends with him, can you ask him to back off a little? I wouldn't mind being just friends with him, but it's kinda' annoying having him look at me as though I'm going to become my boyfriend's next meal." It was _so_ strange to call Jasper that… but yet, it was so simple.

"We've all been telling him to lay off a bit since it's clear that you're happy and safe with Jasper," the boy told me. "It's just that you choosing a blood… I mean, a vampire over him is hard for him to accept."

"Well, give him my deepest apologies," I muttered with an eyeroll.

"You shouldn't have to apologize for choosing Jasper," the boy said. "You love who you love, and Jake just has to get over it. I think it's kind of sweet in a way, how one of the world's most feared hunters fell in love with a human. It shows that Sam's wrong and they really do have a heart. Oh, my name's Seth, by the way. Seth Clearwater."

"Alice Brandon. Pleased to meet you." I shook Seth's hand with my left one with a smile. Out of all the teens from the reservation I had met or knew by name –which consisted of Seth, Leah, Jacob, and Sam- I found that I liked Seth the best. He was easy to get along with, and I could tell that we were going to be great friends.

"Well, I should probably get going," Seth said. "You know, before I get left too far behind. I'll talk to you later, Alice."

"All right. See ya', Seth." I watched him disappear into the trees, and then a familiar pair of arms immediately wrapped around me from behind.

"You're going to have the smell of dog on your hand now, you know," Jasper muttered to me, feigning disgust.

"If that's the worst of it, I don't see the problem," I replied, turning in his arms to face him. "At least you're all still alive. I was so scared when Carlisle told me what the wolves were going to do…"

Jasper cut me off by gently placing his finger on my lips. "Do you know how scared _I_ was when I saw you come out here with Carlisle?" he asked. "I thought that you had both lost your minds!"

I smiled up at him. "If it makes you feel any better, Carlisle was initially against the idea."

"Well, I guess that does make me feel somewhat better," Jasper replied with a smile of his own, ruffling my hair playfully. "At least I know that Carlisle hasn't _completely _lost it in his old age."

We both laughed when we heard Carlisle's playful protest of, "Hey, I heard that!"

"But… I am serious, Jasper," I muttered once my smile vanished as Carlisle went inside the hospital building to speak with Esme. "I was afraid that I was going to lose you."

Jasper sighed as he slowly raised his hand and placed it on my cheek. "You won't lose me, Alice," he told me quietly. "As long as you need me, I will be here in some form or another."

I reached up and placed my hand over the hand he had put on my cheek. "I want that form to be _alive_," I specified.

"Alice, I promise you that I will keep you safe, no matter what that my cost me," Jasper muttered. "I will stay with you in this way as long as I am able." Then, he pulled me closer to him, signaling that the conversation was over.

I sighed as I laid my head against his chest, inhaling deeply. There was that scent that I loved so much- autumn leaves with a hint of vanilla. It made me feel much calmer, and the excitement of the day finally caught up with me as I yawned. I hadn't realized how tired I was before now…

Jasper laughed a little. "Someone needs to go back to her cabin," he stated.

"You're going with me, remember?" I murmured, though I couldn't help but smile a little. "You promised."

"Of course. And I'm planning on keeping that promise." Jasper suddenly put his arm under my knees while keeping one behind my back as he lifted me up. "I'll bring you there now."

"Just be watchful, Jasper," Rosalie cautioned. "Leah seemed pretty angry when she left, and I'm kind of unsure about Jacob. Just keep an eye out for them."

"Don't worry about me, Rose. I'll be fine," Jasper replied. "You watch out for yourself. Be careful on the way to Emmett's cabin."

Rosalie nodded without saying anything before she disappeared into the trees. Once she was gone, Jasper took off at a run in the direction of my cabin.

"Why are you guys keeping an eye on Emmett?" I asked curiously, feeling the wind from the trees as we rushed past them. I didn't quiet trust my eyes to be open when he was running at this speed yet…

"You have to be very careful when dealing with a tracker," Jasper explained. "Since he is one of our kind, he has heightened senses, speed, and strength as we do, but the difference is that his special ability is hunting humans. If he has one person that he is following, which is the case with you, he will do anything he has to do to get to them. He seems to be getting frustrated since he's having a hard time reaching you due to the protection that we're giving you along with the added protection from the wolves. He may try to find another way of getting to you, which may include through a family member. Edward is safe now since he is one of us and is with Bella, but Emmett…"

"Okay, I understand," I muttered with a sigh. "I don't know how I could ever thank all of you guys enough for everything that you've been doing for me."

"You don't have to." I could hear the smile in Jasper's voice. "Just you being here with a beating heart is enough."

I couldn't say anything else before Jasper slowed his pace to a walk. I slowly opened my eyes, almost cautiously, watching as he pushed open the cabin window and climbed inside, setting me down before shutting it again behind him. Then, he hurried to where I was standing, putting his arm around my waist and pulling me up against him before kissing me with a sudden passion, which was strange. Not that I minded…

"Ugh, enough with the PDA! You know I could so turn you guys in for sleeping in the same cabin. In the same bed no less! These sheets reek…"

Jasper grinned against my lips before he pulled away. "Now they'll smell even worse since they have your smell all over them, dog," he replied, his eyes moving up to the top bunk- _my_ bunk. "I knew you were here, Jacob, but I trusted that you wouldn't start anything due to the fact that there are people so close by. As for turning us in, do you know how upset Alice would be if you did that?"

"Yeah, yeah." I watched with surprise as Jacob himself jumped down from the top bunk. I had no idea he was even there! "I was just making sure that you got her back here safely without turning her into a snack… or, even worse, one of you."

"As you can hear, she still has a pulse, does she not?" Jasper muttered with annoyance.

"That she does," Jacob agreed. But then, he turned his attention to me. "Ali, do you think I could ask you something?"

I blinked, caught off guard by his sudden question. "Um, sure," I said. "What is it?"

Jacob sighed, seeming to be uncomfortable. Jasper raised his eyebrow, seeming to understand the hesitance, as he turned around and walked over to the far wall so we could be somewhat alone. I looked after him with confusion before turning back to look at Jacob.

"Look, I know that I've been a jerk because of this whole imprinting thing- though I admit I am somewhat jealous of your boyfriend- but that's not an excuse. I think I've finally come to accept that things just won't work out between us, and I wanted to say I'm sorry. So, if you can find it in your heart to forgive me, maybe we can still be friends. At least grant me that?"

That was the last thing I had expected to hear from Jacob. But, since he was apologizing and it appeared he wouldn't let this imprinting thing control him… "Sure, Jake," I replied. I was known for giving people second chances. And though I had just witnessed the confrontation between his tribe and the vampires I loved, it was just a part of the treaty they had to uphold. Though I didn't like it, I understood where they came from. It would have been different if someone had been hurt, or worse. "We can be friends. But, I think we should start out with just acquaintances first." I then stuck my left hand out for him to shake.

He took it, but then Jacob pulled me tightly into a bone-crushing hug. "Ow… Careful, Jake. Remember, I'm only human…"

"Right. Sorry." Jacob then released me, smiling hugely down on me. "So, um, acquaintances then. I can deal with that. I'll, uh, just leave you two alone then. And I won't turn you guys in to show that there's no hard feelings. Just don't do anything that I would have to report. So, uh, I'll see you later then, Ali."

"Bye, Jake." I watched as Jacob nodded to Jasper before opening the window and climbing out, shutting it again behind him before disappearing into the trees.

"Thankfully, the dog smell seems to roll right off of you after only a couple of seconds," Jasper said with a smirk. "I can't say the same for your sheets, though…"

I rolled my eyes with a smile. "I'll have them washed tomorrow, I promise," I told him. "For tonight, you'll just have to put up with it. It's half past ten."

"Or, we could just use a different bed for tonight," Jasper suggested. "It's not like Bella or Rosalie are sleeping here anymore."

"It's really that bad, huh?" I stood up on Bella's bed so I could reach mine, sniffing the blanket. It must have been a vampire thing because I couldn't smell anything. "Okay, so you pick. Rosalie's or Bella's?"

Jasper laughed a little. "I would like one night where I don't hit my head on anything," he said.

I looked back at him. "So… Rosalie's?" I asked.

My only answer was a smirk from Jasper. Suddenly, he lunged toward me, and I laughed as he wound his arm around me, gently laying me on Rosalie's bed across the room before landing gracefully on his back beside me. "Well, that's one way of traveling that I'll never fully be used to," I muttered with a smile, still laughing a little.

Jasper returned it as he pulled me closer, and I turned onto my side as I rested my head on his chest and draped my arm over his stomach. But something that Jacob had said stuck in my mind, and I knew that it was something that I needed to discuss with Jasper. You know… as a couple.

"I need to talk to you about something."

Sensing my sudden serious mood, Jasper looked down at me curiously. "What is it, Alice?" he asked.

Sighing, I turned to look up at him. "I'm human, and you're immortal," I muttered.

Jasper raised his eyebrow. "Yes…" He clearly had no idea where I was taking this.

"Well, I'm going to die someday," I continued. "Every day, I get older."

"That's the natural way of life, love," Jasper told me. "Now, would you please get to the point you're trying to make?"

I sighed again. "You're never going to get older," I finished. "Do you now how weird it will look when I'm eighty years old and I'm with someone who looks like they're seventeen?"

To my surprise, Jasper laughed. "Is that all you're worried about?" he asked. "How strange it will look in seventy-some years? That's easy enough to solve. We'll live somewhere where there's no one else around-!"

"You're not exactly getting my point, Jasper," I interrupted, placing my head back on his chest. "You'll live forever- I'll probably live for another eighty some years at most if I'm lucky. I don't want it to be that way. I want to be with you… forever. I want to be like you so I can be yours for eternity."

I felt Jasper tense around me, and I quickly looked up, surprised to see that there was some anger flaring in his eyes. "No, Alice," he muttered, placing his hand on top of my head. "Yes, you are the love of my life, but I will not allow you to suffer the same fate I did. I want you to experience all the benefits of being a human- things that I have not and will never experience. You'll have me for those eight some years, I promise you. I will love you always, but I will not turn you into a monster like us. I refuse to condemn you to this life."

After his protest, I felt tears burning in my eyes as I hugged him tighter, his hand running through my hair comfortingly. I loved Jasper more than anything, and I was afraid to lose him. Because compared to eternity, eighty years seemed like nothing at all.

**A/N**: All right, that's it for this one! At least no one was hurt, right? And will Jacob really keep true to his word? I don't know, we'll have to find out. And will Emmett be turned? I'm not sure about that either. But for now, here's the preview! Thanks for reading, guys! Your amazing reviews are much appreciated!

**Next Chapter**: _Bella's Story_

"_Bella! Edward!" I exclaimed, running over to the couple._

"_Hey, Alice!" Bella replied, hugging me tightly as I approached._

"_I've missed you guys!" I said, turning to my brother. I was about to hug him, but I hesitated when I remembered what had happened the last time I saw him…_

Xxx

"_When were you turned then? I know Jasper was during the Civil War."_

"_I was changed a long, long time before that," Bella explained._

Xxx

"_That isn't a very happy story."_

_Bella surprisingly smiled. "Yes, but it has a happy ending."_

Xxx

_I knew I wanted to be like Bella- to have eternity to be with the one I loved._

_But by what Bella told me and what I had seen of Edward's transformation, being turned into a vampire was excruciatingly painful. Could I really have the courage to die so I could live forever with Jasper? _


	21. Chapter 20: Bella's Story

**Disclaimer**: I am not Stephenie Meyer, and I do not own any of her characters. Just this nifty little idea I have.

**A/N**: Hey, thanks for the reviews! Okay, I've received a couple of concerns about Jasper being "Edward-like" in the whole debate over turning Alice thing. I'm keeping as close to the book as possible with Jasper's character, and even in the book, he's a reluctant vampire. He has so much regret about what he is. At least for now, he wouldn't want to turn someone else if they had a choice. So, he's going to stay like that for at least the rest of this story, but I can tell you that the epilogue will reveal a little more about why he's hesitant to turn Alice- it goes a little farther than what he told her, I can tell you that. So, no worries. He'll come around at some point, most likely, lol. I'm writing the sequel now, so there are plenty of opportunities for him to change his mind. Also, I want to make one more note before we get started. Bella's story in this chapter is completely different from what it is in the books because, well, Edward wasn't a vampire until a couple chapters ago, lol (thank you to **Halo**, who actually isn't reading this but I'm telling her about it, for the idea when I was home with the flu!). It kinda can't go the same way. So, I hope you like it! Enjoy!

_Chapter 20- Bella's Story_

June slowly passed into July, and Bella and Edward still had not returned from their hunting expedition. Emmett was starting to get suspicious, but Rosalie, Jasper, and I kept telling him that Carlisle had said Edward could have no visitors in the hospital- he only allowed Bella to stay because she was Carlisle's daughter and also Edward's girlfriend. I didn't know how long Emmett was going to accept that excuse, but I did know that we would have to come up with something different soon.

Also with Emmett, I noticed that he seemed to be feeling… left out. I mean, I had Jasper and now Edward had Bella, but the closest he was to Rosalie was a good friend. I knew that Emmett really, really liked- I would even go as far as saying loved- her, and as far as I could tell, Rosalie felt the same way about him, especially watching her violent reaction after Jasper mentioned her feelings for my brother. It seemed like it would be easy enough for them to get together, so I asked Jasper about it one afternoon before lunch.

"It's true that Rosalie has strong feelings for Emmett," Jasper explained, "but she will not get together with your brother because he's human. She's already tried a relationship with a human while she was a vampire, and it didn't quite work out, which is why she was so wary of our relationship at first."

"That was with Royce, right?" I wondered, remembering what had happened that night in Port Angeles. "What happened?"

"She'll have to tell you that when she's ready," Jasper told me. "It isn't my place to say."

As for my relationship with Jasper went, I was not giving up on asking him to turn me into a vampire. He also wasn't bending on his decision to not have me turned, but I wasn't going to stop trying. I only hoped that one day, he would change his mind… before I got too old and unsightly.

"You're awfully cheerful today," I commented after I grabbed my grilled cheese sandwich and salad for lunch with Jasper behind me.

"You'll see why in a few seconds," Jasper told me, winking.

Before I could ask what he meant, the door to the mess hall opened, and my whole face lit up as the tray nearly dropped from my hands when I saw who entered. Thankfully, Jasper reached forward and took the tray from me before it could fall. "Bella! Edward!" I exclaimed, rushing over to the couple.

"Hey, Alice!" Bella replied, hugging me tightly as I approached.

"I've missed you guys!" I said, turning to my brother. I was about to hug him, but I hesitated when I remembered what had happened the last time I saw him…

But Edward smiled down at me, his golden eyes shining. "It's all right, Alice," he told me, almost as if he could read my mind. "I'm in control. As long as Bella's around, I'm fine. But what I've also noticed is after that initial thirst when I was first turned, I feel like I'm in more control around you than anyone else. It's strange, really…"

"It's true. He's safe to hug, Alice," Bella added with a smile. "He adapted well to our lifestyle."

I was so relieved that I knew Jasper could strongly feel it from where he stood a few feet behind us, and I immediately wrapped my arms around Edward. He pulled me close to him, and though his body was now cold and hard as a rock, it felt great to be in my brother's arms again. "I love you, Ed," I muttered with a broad smile.

Edward leaned down and carefully kissed the top of my head. "I love you too, Alice," he replied.

"Ah! My little brother finally returns!"

I looked past Edward, watching as Emmett and Rosalie entered the mess hall. Edward smiled as our oldest brother approached him and pulled him into a tight, one-armed hug. "Good to see you up and around out of the hospital, Ed," Emmett said, releasing him and holding him at arm's length to quickly look him over. "You seem different…"

"Well, I haven't seen the sun for a while," Edward told him. "It tends to make your skin paler."

"That's true," Emmett replied, but then his eyes narrowed in confusion. "What's up with your eyes, Man? They were _never_ gold…"

A flicker of panic ran through all of us I was sure, but before Edward could say anything, Rosalie placed her hands on Emmett's shoulders. "Look, the lunch line is shorter now," she stated. "Let's get something and let Edward relax a little while he adjusts to the daily routine. We'll talk more when we're all seated." She pushed Emmett in the direction of the line, but she glanced behind her at Edward and gave him a look, which meant something along the lines of, "come up with an excuse for your eyes, and fast!"

"That was close," Bella muttered with a sigh, laying her head back against Edward's chest while he wrapped his arms around her. "We'll have to see if Carlisle has an extra pair of sunglasses for you so we can avoid that question from now on."

* * *

After lunch, Jasper decided that he would go on a small hunt and meet up with me again later once he was done. Edward went to speak with Carlisle to tell him how the extended hunting trip with Bella had gone and ask about a pair of sunglasses while Emmett and Rosalie went to take place in the badminton tournament that the camp was holding that afternoon. Since I wasn't too fond of badminton and I couldn't serve to save my life, this left Bella and I alone.

"Hey, Bella?" I said as we walked down the path that led to our cabin together. We were going to stay there until everyone was done with their prior arrangements, and then figure out something that the six of us could do together. "Jasper told me about his past and a little bit of Rosalie's but I don't know anything about where you come from."

Bella sighed as she came to a stop on the path, and I turned to look at her. "Do… do you really want to know my story?" she asked quietly. "I'm warning you now that it isn't the happiest."

"From what I've gathered, none of your stories are happy," I replied.

After a moment of considering my question, Bella slowly nodded. "All right. Let's have a seat then."

I followed her over to the grass on the side of the path, sitting across from her under the shade of a tree. "I just hope I can remember all of the details," Bella laughed. "The last time I told this story was to Jasper when he first joined our family. That was so long ago…"

"Well, whenever you're ready." I gave her an encouraging smile.

Bella returned it. "Before I start, I just have to tell you something that I believe you will find amusing," she told me. "Did you know that even though I'm posing as Jasper's younger sister, I'm actually older than he is since I was born and changed far earlier than he was?"

I blinked with surprise. For some reason, I had always assumed that Jasper was older, probably because he was always acting like her older brother. "Really?" I asked.

"Yeah," Bella answered. "The only reason he's being my older brother now is because he was seventeen when he was turned while I was only sixteen. But, that's beside the point. I'm still the older one, and he knows it."

"Wow, I had no idea," I muttered. "When were you turned then? I know Jasper was during the Civil War."

"I was changed a long time before then," Bella explained. "It was during the witch trials in Salem, Massachusetts. We were still living in Colonial America at the time. But before I get too far into that, I should probably begin with how I met Carlisle."

I nodded, waiting expectantly to hear how Bella had come to be the one I knew and loved.

"As you know, my real name is Isabella Swan," Bella began. "I was the oldest of two- my little sister's name was Marie. My father was a blacksmith while my mother stayed home to take care of the house and my sister and I when we weren't at school. We were a modest family, not too prominent in society since we only made enough money to get by on and only had two slaves, but we were always sharing what little we had to give with our neighbors.

"But the only thing was my sister had a lot of health problems, mainly with her lungs. We had to spend a lot of the little money we had to try to get her the help she needed, but no doctor or physician we went to seemed to be able to provide her with what was needed to help her.

"That is, until we heard about Carlisle. He was young and unmarried- a doctor who had just arrived in Salem from London. But despite his age, his record was impressive, and we had no other choice left. So, when my father was at work and my mother was busy with chores around the house, I took Marie to see him.

"Carlisle was unlike anyone I had ever seen before. He was beautiful with alabaster skin and mysterious golden eyes, and I had to wonder why he wasn't married. There was such a great feeling of compassion radiating from him that we couldn't help but trust him. As he looked over my sister, he made a diagnosis much faster than any doctor that I had ever taken her to. He then made this medicine- which we called _potions_ at the time- and gave it to me, giving me specific instructions that Marie should take a teaspoon of it before she went to bed every night. He also told me to stop by the next morning to tell him how it worked.

"So, I did what he told me. I gave Marie a teaspoon of the medicine that Carlisle had made before she went to sleep, and the next morning, her coughing had subsided somewhat. Not much, but it was only her first time taking it, and it was a much better improvement that we've seen in almost a year. I was so thrilled that I ran to Carlisle's office to tell him that my sister's condition seemed to be improving. I tried to give him the last of my own personal money to pay for the medicine, but he wouldn't accept it. He told me that seeing my happiness and learning about my sister's improved health was payment enough for him.

"We were so grateful that my mother invited Carlisle over for dinner. He came, but he didn't eat anything, which I found strange at the time. But he stayed and chatted for a while with us, but I soon noticed that he had a particular interest in me. Carlisle asked about my schooling, and I told him that I was at the top of my class when I graduated and was now looking for an apprenticeship. He proceeded to ask what I was interested in, and I said that I wasn't exactly sure but I was having a hard time finding one because they didn't provide me with an opportunity to help people in the way that I wanted. So finally, he asked me if I would want to consider being his apprentice. He told me that I would be getting great experience and the pay would be good.

"At first, I wasn't sure what to say. I had never thought that I would enter the medical field. I hadn't made up my mind fast enough to give him an answer that night, but after he left and I went to bed, I made my decision. The next morning, I went to his office and told him that I would be his apprentice.

"Things went very well for about a month. My sister kept getting better, and I learned a lot under Carlisle's teachings. His office became like my second home, and he treated me so well that he became another father figure to me. He paid me every week, and he even gave me a little extra to get something for myself since my pay went toward helping my family put food on the table.

"Now, with the extra money that Carlisle gave me, I bout some of the ingredients that I saw him use to create his medicines for his patients. I wanted to try it for myself, but I couldn't experiment in my house, so I had to find someplace else to do it. Typically, I would use Carlisle's office when he had to run an errand.

"But one day, when I was on my own and experimenting, the governor walked into the office since he had been having a limp for some time and discovered me. The witch hunts had been going on for a while now, so if there was any hint that someone, especially young girls, was different, they would be arrested.

She paused for a moment as she sighed, looking down at the ground.

"And… and that's what happened to you?" I asked, engrossed in the story.

Bella nodded, still not meeting my gaze. "I was arrested on the spot," she continued quietly. "Everything was against me at this point. I was a young girl mixing things together to make this strange, so-called potion. They interrogated me, but my mind was shielded. They didn't get anything out of me. Both my father and Carlisle tried to convince the governor that I was innocent and not really a witch, but it was no use. I was held in a cell for a couple of weeks along with some other girls that truly seemed to me like they were witches. They either had been mad to start with or driven mad from being locked in a small cell for so long.

"Then, my trial came. They bound my hands and feet and brought me to a small pond near the jail. I knew that they had tried many women here, and a lot hadn't survived. They then threw me into the pond, and for a moment, I planned on staying under and drowning just to prove that I wasn't what they claimed I was so I didn't have to go through the torture I knew was coming up if I managed to survive this. But, I was afraid to die, and since I was a strong swimmer, I pushed myself to the surface. I was pulled out immediately by guards though my father and Carlisle tried to reach me first, and was brought back to the jail, this time in my own separate cell since I was now a convicted witch."

"You were a convicted witch?" I muttered with disbelief. "That's terrible…"

Bella sighed as she once again nodded in answer, her hesitance clearly on her face. "I can stop the story now if you would like me to, Alice…"

"No, that's okay. Please continue." I was too far into the story now to not hear the end.

"Well, I assume you're now wondering how I became a vampire," Bella said, raising her gaze to mine again.

When I nodded, she decided to go on with her story. "It was the night before I was going to be burned at the stake. Yes, they actually did that back then. I've heard it was a terrible way to die. But by this point, I had completely given up hope. After all, how could I get out of something like this?

"But that's when Carlisle came to my cell. I had no idea how he had gotten past the guards, but all I remember was that I began to cry as soon as I saw him and begged him to not let me die. I had never been more afraid in my life. He reached the bars and took my hand tightly in his to try to comfort me. That was the first time I had ever touched him, and I was shocked by how cold his skin was.

"'You are not normal, are you?' I had asked.

"'No,' he had answered, but he didn't tell me any more. 'But I will do what I can to save you if that is what you really want me to do.'

"I told him to do what he had to do to get me out of there. I was so afraid of dying that I didn't even stop to think of what this could potentially mean. I had no idea what he truly was, what I was going to become.

"'Stand back," he told me.

"I moved as far away from the bars as I could, and I watched with fear as Carlisle took two of the bars and pulled them apart as if it was nothing. But I couldn't scream as he walked through them and came toward me. My voice refused to work, and I didn't want to alert the guards. I then wondered if I hadn't been driven mad and this was just some trick my mind was playing on me. So, I did the only thing I could at the time. I just started to laugh."

"Laugh?" I repeated. I couldn't imagine how crazy my friend must have felt locked in a small cell and witnessing Carlisle's inhuman strength. That would make anyone feel as if they had lost their minds…

Bella nodded. "I laughed and found that I couldn't stop. Carlisle looked at me with a great sense of sorrow as he knelt down before me. He once again took my hand in his and apologized- I wasn't sure for what yet- as he told me that he was going to give me another chance for a future. I knew I had none here, even if I did manage to escape- I would be an outcast in the town, always being hunted as a witch. Then, Carlisle did something completely unexpected. He leaned forward and bit both of my wrists and my neck.

"The pain was unbearable, and I wasn't sure what was happening to me. I began to scream among my laughter, and I knew that I must have truly been insane now. But it's said that laughter is the best medicine, and that was the case here. It at least made the pain easier to deal with as Carlisle watched me with pain in his own eyes.

"I have no idea how long this pain went on for, just that it was a long time, but then, it just stopped. Both my screaming and laughing ceased as I looked at the cell around me with shock. It was as though I was seeing the world for the first time again. Everything was so clear, and I could hear even the quietest of sounds, smell the subtlest of smells.

"Suddenly, my throat was burning, and I was filled with a thirst that I had never experienced before. I had a strange thirst for blood of all things, human blood. Carlisle explained to me what we were, and though I didn't believe him at first, he took me from the cell to the surrounding woods to hunt for animals. It wasn't exactly what I had been craving, but it held me over. That was when I knew that things were never going to be the same."

I stared at Bella with wonder as she finished telling her story. "Wow… I had no idea…" I muttered. "You're right, though. That isn't a very happy story."

Bella surprisingly smiled. "Yes, but it has a happy ending," she said. "I have a wonderful family now. After about two centuries of traveling with Carlisle, we found Esme. He changed her, and she became his wife and my mother. And then, a couple centuries after that, we found Rosalie, who became my sister. After that came Jasper, Rose's twin brother who was already a vampire, and he joined our family and became my brother. And now, I found Edward, and Jasper found you. We both now have someone we love."

"But not Rosalie," I commented.

"Rose is a… bit complicated," Bella admitted with some hesitance. "She does have strong feelings for Emmett, but she won't act on them because-!"

"He's human," I finished quietly for her. "Jasper told me that much."

Bella sighed. "I believe that Emmett would be good for her and would treat her right," she said. "But I can't blame Rose for not wanting to risk anything, not after what has happened to her with relationships."

I was about to ask her about this, but Bella immediately shook her head. "Please don't ask me," she whispered. "That's something that you'll have to ask her. But, I think we should probably head to the cabins now. Jasper and Edward should meet us there shortly, and then we can head over to watch the end of the badminton tournament."

"Okay, let's go." I stood up as Bella did, and we began to walk toward the cabins together. It was a silent walk, though, since a lot was on my mind. True, my best friend now had a happy ending with my brother, but was my ending really happy with Jasper? Bella and Edward had eternity to be together, but as I had determined last night, I only had eight-some years, if I was lucky, to be with him. And how would Jasper be without me now that he had me? Would he just forget about me after I died and move on with his life? It wasn't a sight I wanted to imagine. I knew that I wanted to be like Bella- to have eternity to spend with the one I loved.

But by what Bella told me and what I had seen of Edward's transformation, being turned into a vampire was excruciatingly painful. Could I really have the courage to die so I could live forever with Jasper?

Yes, I realized after a moment of thought, yes I could. Because after all, death wouldn't be a high price to pay to spend eternity with an angel.

**A/N**: That last line should be familiar from the preface, lol. But anyway, I'm sorry about having Jasper be kind of "Edward-like" at this point. Hopefully, he'll change his mind, huh? It most likely will not be in this story, though. But, I hope you guys liked Bella's story! Sorry it's so far off from the books, but I didn't really have that much choice. And, overall, I think it turned out well. Thanks for reading! Your reviews are much appreciated! And, here's the preview!

**Next Chapter**: _The Tracker's Next Move_

"_That's what makes me different, Alice," Edward told me quietly, almost as if he knew what I was thinking…_

Xxx

"_I wonder what trait I would bring over if _I_ was turned into one of you…"_

"_Well, that is something that you don't have to worry about since that won't be happening," Jasper told me, looking at me sternly._

"_Says you," I muttered, crossing my arms in a disgruntled way._

_Jasper smirked, putting his arm around my waist and pulling me close to his side. "Exactly. That _is_ what I say."_

Xxx

_"I asked her to go do the dance with me, Al," Emmett answered quietly, not meeting my gaze. "She said no."_

Xxx

"No…_" I ran down the path that my brother had walked on, hoping that I could find him in time before… I went around a couple of corners before completely freezing with fear, a scream ripping from my throat. _

"Emmett_!"_

Xxx

_I hadn't seen this… _Why_ hadn't I seen this?!_


	22. Chapter 21: The Tracker's Next Move

**Disclaimer**: My first name may start with an "s," but it is definitely not Stephenie since I'm not Stephenie Meyer.

**A/N**: Hey, thanks for all of your reviews, you guys! An extra special shout-out to **Jade Lyssy Swan** for reviewing all of the chapters in such a short period of time (applauds)! They're very wonderful, as are all of the reviews I've gotten. Everyone gets some of that sour cream and onion dip I made to go with some chips! I'm glad you all enjoyed Bella's story (sighs with relief). It was very fun to write. I'm apologizing because this chapter is going to be a little shorter than the rest. It was going to be combined with the next one, but then it got way too long, so I divided it up. But, I hope you like it, and so I can avoid the chainsaw (lol), here we go!

_Chapter 21- The Tracker's Next Move_

Bella had been right- we sat in our cabin for only another ten minutes before Jasper came through the window so he wouldn't be spotted by any of the other girls that might have been in the area at the time.

"Feel better, Jazz?" I asked when he sat down on the floor next to me, his nickname once again slipping out. I couldn't help it- I thought it was really cute.

Jasper smiled before pulling me into his lap. "Much," he answered, tickling my side a little so that I jumped and laughed, causing a broad smile to spread across his face.

Bella smiled too as she watched us, but then she turned her head to look at the window when Edward climbed through wearing a pair of dark sunglasses. She quickly got up from her spot on the floor and hugged him tightly after he closed the window behind him. "You took an awfully long time for just getting a pair of sunglasses from Carlisle," she muttered, kissing his lips quickly and tenderly.

"Sorry about that," Edward said with a smile. "But Carlisle discovered something that's… different about me that he wanted to try to understand."

"What would that be?" Bella wondered.

I looked up at Edward from where I sat in Jasper's arms and smirked. I remembered that Jasper had told me during one of our late-night conversations that contrary to the popular legend, vampires really couldn't turn into bats. Since Edward had said that he was different, I couldn't help but smile when the amusing thought of him turning into a bat crossed my mind.

Edward turned to look at me as he laughed a little, his smile broadening. "No, Alice. I can't turn into a bat," he told me.

Wait. Hadn't that thought only been in my mind? I hadn't actually spoken it aloud, had I? I looked up at Jasper just to make sure, and I saw that he looked just as confused as I was. Well, that meant that I actually hadn't spoken my thought out loud. So, how had Edward known what I was thinking?

"That's what makes me different, Alice," Edward told me quietly, almost as if he knew what I was thinking…

Bella thought this over for another minute before her eyes widened when she realized what this meant. "You can read minds."

Edward nodded in confirmation. "It makes being around people very interesting when I can hear their thoughts," he explained. "Right now, I can hear what Alice and Jasper are thinking… but not you. I can't hear your thoughts."

"Well, there is a reason for that," Bella said with a slight smile. "I have the ability to block out abilities that other vampires may possess. The only one who can really use their ability on me is Jazz."

"And how fun it is to mess with my little sister's emotions," Jasper muttered with a sly smile.

Bella turned and glared at him. "I still haven't forgiven you for what you did on April Fool's Day a few years ago," she told him angrily.

Jasper smirked in return. "But everyone else really enjoyed it," he returned.

"Do I _want_ to know what happened?" I asked nervously, looking from Jasper to Bella and back.

"No," Bella answered quickly while Jasper only chuckled.

I would have to take her word for it.

"This is interesting, though," Bella continued, turning her attention back to Edward as she took his hand in hers. "You must have been really in tune to the thoughts of others around you when you were human if you're able to read minds now."

"I was," Edward confirmed with a small smile, placing his arm around Bella's waist. "But I have the nagging feeling that I will be annoyed to no end since I can't tell what you're thinking."

Bella smirked up at him, her eyes shining playfully. "Oh, you had better believe you will."

* * *

"So, do all vampires have special abilities?"

Jasper looked down at me as we walked down the path through the woods a ways behind Edward and Bella that would lead us to the clearing where the badminton tournament was being held. "No, not all of them," he answered. "In my family, only Bella, Edward, and I have actual abilities. They come from one of our qualities that we had while we were human, just magnified. For instance, I was always in tune to the emotions of those around me, which is why I now have the ability to feel and manipulate emotions. Bella had an exceptionally strong, shielded mind, which is why she can now shield herself and others from other abilities a vampire may possess. And Edward was in tune to the other people's thoughts since he can now read minds, as he said.

"But even if a vampire doesn't have an actual ability, they always bring something with them from their human life. Carlisle, for instance, has more compassion for others than anyone I have ever known, and Esme has stronger maternal instincts than any other vampire I have come across. Rosalie had her beauty magnified, more than usual for our kind."

I nodded thoughtfully. "I wonder what trait I would bring over if _I_ was turned into one of you…"

"Well, that is something that you won't have to worry about since that won't be happening," Jasper told me, looking at me sternly.

"Says you," I muttered, crossing my arms in a disgruntled way.

Jasper smirked, putting his arm around my waist and pulling me closer to his side. "Exactly. That _is_ what I say."

I sighed with irritation. He may have won the battle, but he most certainly hadn't won the war. I would get my happy ending with him, I would make sure of it.

When the four of us reached the clearing, I saw that it was the match point in the final game of the tournament. It was Emmett and Rosalie versus Mike and Jessica. Rosalie served it over the net and Jessica hit it back, but Emmett rushed forward and smacked the birdie so hard I thought it was going to break to the other side that neither Mike or Jessica could return it. The game was over, and at least we had seen the most important part. No one could beat the team made up of a vampire and my brother, who had a lot of physical strength also.

I clapped and smiled broadly along with Bella, Edward, Jasper, and everyone else who had gathered to watch the tournament since Emmett and Rosalie had won. Then, my eyes widened with surprise as I laughed when I watched Emmett wrap his arms around Rosalie's waist and spin her around in a complete circle in a sort of victory celebration. Rosalie laughed, putting her arms around his neck until he set her back down again.

"Did they really think that they had a chance against those two?" Bella asked, still clapping as she leaned over toward me.

"Probably," I answered. "Bad mistake on Mike and Jessica's part."

"You got that right."

I laughed a little more, but my smile vanished as I looked up and saw Jasper and Edward's anxious expressions. "What's wrong, Jazz?"

Jasper watched my brother and Rosalie talk for another moment before looking down at me. There was definite hesitance on his face, and I wondered what he was feeling that was making him so anxious.

"Emmett…" Edward whispered nervously. "He's going to… to ask her."

"Ask her what?" I was starting to feel a little nervous myself. With Jasper's ability to read emotions and Edward's to hear others' thoughts, I couldn't imagine what they were so anxious about.

Jasper turned to look at Edward. "It's not going to go well," he muttered.

"No, it isn't," Edward agreed as he met Jasper's gaze, concern in his golden eyes.

Bella and I exchanged nervous looks. "What are you guys talking about?" I asked.

Before Jasper or Edward could answer, Emmett suddenly came walking toward us while Rosalie stayed behind and watched him leave with a tense expression on her face before she turned and walked in the opposite direction, tossing both her and my brother's badminton rackets to the ground. "Hey, good job, Em!" I tried to congratulate my oldest brother as he approached us. But he didn't even seem to hear me, and instead, he walked straight past us without a word or even a glance at us.

"Go after him," Jasper suddenly whispered to me, kissing my cheek quickly. "We'll go check on Rosalie. Meet us back here when you're done."

"All right. I will." I watched as Jasper, Bella, and Edward ran after Rosalie before I turned and hurried after Emmett, who was already a decent way ahead of me on the path that led away from the clearing. "Em, wait up!"

Emmett didn't stop or turn around when he heard me call after him, but he slowed his pace a little so that I could catch up. "Em, what's wrong?" I asked as soon as I fell into step beside him. "You guys won! You should be happy!"

"I asked her to go to the dance with me, Al," Emmett answered quietly, not meeting my gaze. "She said no."

I sighed as my steps faltered, knowing the reason behind Rosalie's refusal. I knew that it wasn't because she didn't like Emmett, but it was only because she was a vampire and he was human. But, I also knew that it had to hurt Rosalie just as much as it hurt my brother since those strong feelings for him were there…

"I'm sorry, Em," I muttered, not knowing what else to say. "But you never know. Things might change for you two. She might change her mind…"

"No, it's all right, Al," Emmett said, speeding up his pace again almost as if to lose me. "I don't even know why I bothered asking her. I know I don't stand a chance…"

Being able to tell that he wanted to be left alone, I stopped walking as I sighed again, watching as my brother turned the corner out of sight. Emmett was really hurting, I could see it, and it hurt me to see my brother like this since he was normally so happy and carefree. But there wasn't anything that I could do for him at the moment, so I reluctantly turned and began to head back toward the clearing to wait for Jasper, Bella, and Edward to come back.

Suddenly, I gasped when I heard a low, threatening growl from the path behind me, and I spun around to see what had made the sound. I couldn't see any animals nearby, so I figured it must have come from somewhere deeper in the woods. It would probably leave me alone if I kept walking.

But then, my heart nearly stopped when I heard another louder growl shortly followed by a familiar cry of pain.

_No_… I immediately began to run down the path that my brother had walked on, hoping that I could find him before… I went around a couple of corners before completely freezing with fear, a scream ripping from my throat.

"_Emmett_!"

My brother was lying on the grass at the base of a tree, covered in tons of his own blood. Towering over him was a massive bear, a hungry glint in its eyes. It stood up on its hind legs, raising its dagger-like claws over Emmett as if it meant to finish him off…

I hadn't seen this… _Why_ hadn't I seen this?!

"No! Stay away from him!" I shouted, picking up a good-sized rock at my feet and throwing it at the bear. I watched with a satisfied smile as it struck it right in the chest, but then it vanished when the bear turned its now angry eyes to me. Why did I never think about things before I did them? I began to quickly back up as it roared loudly and came at me, and I screamed when I fell over my feet and hit the ground, landing hard on my back. I slowly opened my eyes, screaming again and covering my head when I saw the bear over me. It stood up on its hind legs and raised its paw, roaring angrily as it started to quickly lower it…

At least it would be over instantly…

Suddenly, I heard another angry growl from behind me. I cautiously lowered my arms, watching as Jasper flew over my head and tackled the bear away from me. They rolled down the path a little, and with one quick snap of his teeth at its throat, the creature was dead.

I slowly sat up, shaking, as Jasper hurried over and knelt down beside me. "Alice, are you all right?" he asked anxiously, pulling me into his arms.

"I-I'm fine. The bear didn't touch me," I managed to answer, clinging to him tightly. Though I had just seen the true animal side of Jasper only a few short moments ago, I still felt much safer in his arms. "But… Emmett…"

Jasper nodded as he tightened his arms around me, and I could now feel that he was holding his breath. The strong smell of blood must have been torture for him since there was so much. _I_ could even smell it… "I know. We'll have to get him to Carlisle immediately…"

"I'll do it, Jasper."

Both Jasper and I looked at the path behind us, watching as Rosalie approached us with Bella and Edward behind her. "I'll do it, Jasper," she repeated, her golden eyes flickering to my bloody brother nervously. "I'll bring Emmett to Carlisle. You stay here with Alice. She needs you now more than she needs us."

Jasper nodded before quickly kissing the top of my head. "All right, Rose," he muttered, keeping his gaze on Edward to see how he handled having to smell so much blood. "Are you sure that you'll be all right to-!"

"Yes, Jasper," Rosalie assured him, determination evident in her voice.

"Okay. Hurry then," Jasper told her quietly. "He won't last much longer. He's barely holding on."

I looked up at Jasper with fear as Rosalie rushed past us and knelt down beside Emmett, delicately running her fingers over his pale face before easily picking him up into her arms and running down the path and out of sight at an inhuman speed. Thankfully, no one else was around at the moment. "He won't last much longer?" I asked quietly. "Doest that mean-!"

"I'm afraid so, Alice," Jasper interrupted me gently, placing his hand lightly on top of my head. "Emmett's wounds are deep. There are too many. There is no way that he can survive with those kinds of injuries. There's only one thing that Carlisle can do if you still want your brother."

This couldn't be happening. First Edward was turned into a vampire, and now Emmett was about to be. Why was I losing all of my family?

"Edward and I will go speak to the wolves," Bella suddenly told us. She must have been anxious to get Edward away from the lingering smell of blood. "Maybe if they have warning about what will happen…"

"Good idea," Jasper agreed. "You two handle that, and I'll stay with Alice. Just be careful."

"You too," Edward returned, and I could tell that he was practically warning Jasper to keep me safe.

Before Jasper could say anything, he, along with Bella and Edward, suddenly tensed and looked into the trees off to our right. His eyes narrowed dangerously. "The tracker is near…"

"We'll go after him," Bella muttered with determination, quickly grabbing Edward's hand. "Get Alice out of here. Come on, Edward." And without another word, she and my brother disappeared into the woods.

"Here's what we'll do," Jasper explained to me as he gently helped me to my feet so he could get me away from the area, I assumed. "I'm going to drop you off with Carlisle and Rosalie, and then I'll have a meeting with the wolves to explain the situation. I… Damn it!"

I was startled by the fierce tone his voice suddenly took on. "What?" I asked with alarm. I had never heard Jasper swear before, and it made me nervous… _very_ nervous.

Jasper sighed angrily, his golden eyes flaring as he paused on the path for a moment. "We should have been watching Emmett more closely… Damn… The tracker is still close enough so that I can feel his emotions," he finally answered me, starting to pull on my arm as he led me along again. "Judging by what I can make out of them… the satisfaction but also the disappointment… that animal attack wasn't random. He's the one that set that bear on Emmett."

My breath caught in my chest and tears rushed to my eyes as I looked up into Jasper's intense expression. The tracker had set the bear on Emmett? How had I not seen it… How could I have been blind to that decision?

Suddenly, my phone began to vibrate from my pocket. Jasper stopped again and looked down at me as I slowly pulled it out, and though I only had one bar of service, I flipped it open and slowly raised it to my ear. "He… hello?"

I looked up at Jasper nervously as a single tear fell from my eye when all I heard was a quiet, cruel laughter before whoever had called hung up.

**A/N**: As I said, I'm sorry that it's shorter. I was going to combine it with the next chapter, but the next chapter got too long. But, I hope you enjoyed this anyway, and I will try to get the next one up tomorrow. Poor Emmett, huh? Thank you for reading! Your reviews are much appreciated. Thank you! And, as always, my wonderful reviewers, here's the next preview!

**Next Chapter**: _Rosalie's Regrets_

"_That's what I'm afraid is going to happen with me, that I'm only going to be some… passing craze for him," I muttered, lowering my gaze to my folded hands. "I'm only going to be around for another eighty-some years while you'll be here for eternity, and once I'm gone, he'll find someone else and just get over me…"_

_I gasped quietly when Rosalie was suddenly in the chair beside me. She put her cold hand beneath my chin and raised my head so that my eyes would meet hers. "I don't believe that will happen, Alice," she told me fiercely._

Xxx

_"If our endings were supposed to be happy, we would all be buried now. Buried and gone. Bella only says that because she has Edward now. Jasper has you for your lifetime, but… I don't have anyone."_

Xxx

_Emmett sighed, his playful nature gone as he reached forward and took her hands in his. "Rosalie…" he said quietly, raising his black eyes to look into her golden ones. "I meant to tell you this when I asked you to the dance, but… I want you to know that I love you, and I'm here if you choose to accept me. You don't have to be alone anymore, Rosalie."_


	23. Chapter 22: Rosalie's Regrets

**Disclaimer**: Nope, these characters aren't mine. I'm just using them how I see fit for this story!

**A/N**: Hey, guys! Sorry I didn't get the chance to update yesterday. I had a sleepover two nights ago (we spent most of the night playing Guitar Hero, it was great!) and I spent the whole day with my friend yesterday. I didn't want to update in front of her and be mean, you know? Plus, I didn't have my notebook with me, so I couldn't have done it anyway. But, I'm back today! Thank you so much for all of your reviews! They're awesome! Oh, and just a note, Jasper and Rosalie really are twins in this story, not just pretending. Also, Rosalie's story is similar to Meyer's version, I just twisted some details around. So, enjoy the next chapter!

**Warning**: A little mention of abuse, but not graphic. Sorry, had to put this warning in.

_Chapter 22- Rosalie's Regrets_

"_He's the one who set the bear on Emmett."_

I couldn't the words that Jasper had said out of my mind as I silently sat in the waiting room of the camp's hospital with Rosalie, nor could I forget his feelings of regret over what had happened to my brother. He had been right, though. The tracker really _was_ trying to get to me through the people that were close to me. Who would he strike next before he came directly for me? Jacob? Mike even?

"Alice, I can't help but feel that I'm somewhat responsible for what happened to Emmett."

At the sudden, quiet statement, I looked up at the vampire sitting across the room from me. "Why is that, Rose?" I asked. I knew Jasper felt the same way, but it wasn't his fault. What happened was out of anyone's control.

Rosalie sighed as she straightened up in her chair, meeting my gaze with regret-filled eyes. "I just feel so terrible," she answered quietly. "Emmett was so shy, and when he finally gathered up the strength to ask me to the dance, I told him no. And then that bear came… I'm so sorry, Alice…"

"That bear was set on Em by the tracker to get to me, Rose. That isn't your fault," I told her sternly. "Besides, I understand that you were reluctant to go with him since he's human." Rosalie looked up at me with confusion. "Jazz and Bella told me."

"Oh. I was wondering how you knew about that," Rosalie muttered, moving her gaze away from mine again. "But… do you know why I feel that way?"

I shook my head. "No," I replied. "All I know is that before you were a vampire, you moved to Forks with your abusive fiancé during the Civil War."

Surprisingly, Rosalie laughed a little. "That's all Jasper told you?" she wondered.

"Well, he mentioned something else about your earlier lives, but I'm not sure if it's true or not," I told her. I hoped it wasn't…

"What did Jasper tell you, Alice?"

"He… said something about how your mother died when you were about ten and that your father was an abusive alcoholic," I said somewhat hesitantly. I hoped that was something that Jasper had only made up to explain how he and Rosalie had been adopted by Carlisle and that it really wasn't true.

Rosalie's golden eyes faltered, and I suddenly felt anxious. "Yes, that is true," she nearly whispered. "I can't tell you how afraid I was when our father would come home drunk every night after our mother died. Jasper would always defend me, which made him angry. You have no idea how awful it is to only be able to watch helplessly as your brother is being struck. It's the worst feeling in the world, hearing the whimpers of pain when he nearly silently took the beating since Jasper always refused to show our father how much pain he was truly in, and you could do nothing to stop him from being hurt. There is nothing that can make you feel more insignificant.

"But Jasper and I were close, being twins, and the only time that he would show his true pain was when he was with me when we were alone after our father passed out. We would sit in the room we shared while I tried to take care of his injuries as best as I could, and he would only shed a couple of tears even then. It made my heart break, how much he truly suppressed that pain. But I also knew that these tears weren't just from the physical injuries he had, but also the mental and emotional ones from the abuse the he received from our own father, a man that was supposed to love and care for us.

"Our one form of solace was his guitar. Once I was finished wrapping his injuries, he would pull out that guitar that our mother gave him and play some beautiful melody on it that he called my lullaby on it until I fell asleep. It was very calming, and even though he was going through so much pain, he was still watching out for me. As we grew older, the melodies he played grew more complex and more beautiful, but his injuries also grew worse since his temper at our father grew. Poor Jasper. A few of those scars lingered with him until he was turned by Maria. He has different scars now…"

"He showed me," I muttered, feeling a great sadness inside of me learning about the past of the love of my life and one of my closest friends. "God, Rosalie, that's terrible…"

"And that's only the start," Rosalie told me with a dark glint in her eyes. "The rest of my story continues in a downward spiral. But if you want to hear it…"

"I do," I said with a nod. "I know Jazz and Bella's stories, and I would like to know yours too if you don't mind."

Rosalie gave me a small smile. "Well, all right. If you insist." She cleared her throat and began her explanation.

"Jasper and I were seventeen when the story truly starts. The year was 1861, which of course you know is the year that the Civil War began. But that doesn't quite come into play yet. It will soon. But since I was seventeen, it was time I began to look for a husband. One of my closest friends, he name was Diana, was already married and had a very young son. He was beautiful with dark hair and dark eyes. And after seeing this child, I knew that's what I wanted too. I wanted a beautiful child of my own. You know, Emmett kind of reminds me of him with the dark hair and dark eyes.

"But anyway, my father arranged for me to be married to the son of a millionaire named Ronald King. With my beauty, it wasn't difficult to arrange the marriage, and I was more than happy to go through with it. But Jasper wasn't. He didn't approve of Ronald at all. He felt that there was something off about him and was afraid of what would happen if I married him. Of course I didn't listen to him, which I realize now I should have. I wouldn't be here now if I had. I knew what I wanted, or at least, I thought I did. So, ignoring Jasper's warnings, I went through with the engagement."

I couldn't help but notice as Rosalie paused in her story that the last name of her fiancé had been King. Hadn't that been Royce's last name too? I figured that I would wait and allow her to explain it.

"That was about the time the Civil War broke out." Rosalie sighed, and my eyes flickered with interest. "Since I was going to be getting away from our father due to the engagement, Jasper decided that he would lie about his age so that he could get into the Confederate army for the war. That was the thing about Jasper, though. There was just something about his eyes that made you believe him.

"I highly disapproved of this. I didn't want my only brother running into battle and throwing his life away. But, he is as stubborn as I am, unfortunately, and I clearly remember the last thing he ever told me while we were human was that I was also doing something that he didn't approve of. Then, he just left- left me and everything else in his life behind. I'm sorry to say, Alice, that you weren't his first girlfriend. There was a girl that he had begun to see named Caroline before he joined the war. It didn't last long, though, and he couldn't go back to her once he was a vampire. It was too dangerous. And she's obviously dead now…"

"That's what I'm afraid is going to happen with me, that I'm only going to be some… passing craze for him," I muttered, lowering my gaze to my folded hands. "I'm only going to be around for another eighty-some years while you'll be here for eternity, and once I'm gone, he'll find someone else and just get over me…"

I gasped quietly when Rosalie was suddenly in the chair beside me. She put her cold hand beneath my chin and raised my head so that my eyes would meet hers. "I don't believe that will happen, Alice," she told me fiercely. "As long as my brother and I have been here, I have never seen him happier than when he is around you. You complete him. You're what he needs. Jasper will be heartbroken when you… well… when you're out of our lives, and I have the feeling that he will follow you. But if he doesn't and instead survives, you have the better end of the deal."

"What do you mean?" I asked quietly when Rosalie lowered her hand. Dying was better than living forever?

"How do you think Jasper will feel if he lost you?" Rosalie answered with another question. "Believe me, to have to live with that sort of pain for eternity will be torture. Seeing him suffer will be difficult for the rest of us too. That's why we never try to form attachments to humans. Your lives are short. We've lived through it all, Alice, the good times and the bad. Having you in our lives is a good thing, especially for Jasper. But you being human… Let me just say that your death, if it should come to that, in eighty-some years will be hard on all of us."

Tears formed in my eyes at her words, but I successfully blinked them away. "Bella said that despite your hard lives, you now have happy endings," I said.

Surprisingly, Rosalie laughed a little as she looked away from me. "Well, yes and no," she replied quietly. "If our endings were supposed to be happy, we would all be buried now. Buried and gone. Bella only says that because she has Edward now. Jasper has you for your lifetime, but… I don't have anyone. I should have died back in 1861, I know I should have. But quite clearly, Carlisle thought that there was a reason for keeping me alive. But I shouldn't be. I would rather be dead than have to live alone forever."

She paused, and I hesitantly asked, "What happened with you and your fiancé? Jazz mentioned something about him being abusive, but that's all."

Rosalie sighed as she raised her golden gaze to meet mine again. "Yes, Ronald was abusive," she told me. "It wasn't much at first. In fact, it started off as verbal. But once the Civil War broke out, he wanted to move North since he was originally born in Washington and wanted to support the Union. I hesitantly went with him since I didn't want to leave home in hopes that I would see Jasper again since I hadn't seen him since he had left to join the army, and we had also been on bad terms. But unfortunately, I didn't see him again, and we were settled in Forks by the end of the week.

"But that's when the real trouble began. Ronald grew more abusive, but there wasn't anything that I could do about it. I just had to be strong and take it. My mind was constantly on Jasper, wondering how he was doing. There was no way that I could contact him, nor could he contact me since he didn't know that I had moved. It's terrible not knowing if the brother that you love dearly is alive or dead.

"On the night before our marriage, Ronald stayed out late with some of his friends. I won't go into too much detail, but he came home very drunk, more than usual. He took me outside and beat me while his friends just laughed, leaving me on the street in front of our hose to bleed to death. I thought I was going to die. I _should_ have died that night…

"Instead, I was found by Carlisle, who was the most respected doctor in Forks, his wife, Esme, and his daughter, Bella. He saw something in me that I suppose was worth saving, a reason to give me another chance at life. And that's what Carlisle did. But let me tell you, Alice, the pain of the transformation is terrible. I might have preferred to take death over that, since from what I've heard from friends who have known someone who has died and from remembering from my mother, death is more peaceful.

"But here I am, still not knowing why Carlisle turned me. The only thing that gave me true satisfaction after that was when I returned and completely destroyed Ronald, tearing him limb from limb. I felt like a monster, Alice, a heartless monster. There's nothing left for me here."

I studied Rosalie intently, thinking her words over carefully. She believed that death was preferable to this life, that her happy ending would have placed her underground instead of having her here beside me now? How was that possible? My thought was that she still needed to find the one thing in her life that she was missing, the one thing that she truly hadn't experienced as a human… the one thing that would make her complete. That was why Carlisle had spared her.

"Jazz told me about how you two were reunited," I said. "What I'm curious about is how Royce King comes into this."

Rosalie's face darkened. "As you can probably gather by the last name, Royce was a descendant of Ronald. I wasn't Ronald's first girl, believe me," she replied. "Royce showed an interest in me, and I decided that I was in enough control to attempt a relationship even though he was human while I wasn't.

"It turned out to be the worst mistake of my vampire life. Just like Ronald, Royce was abusive too. Though it didn't hurt me then, I just couldn't believe that someone would do those kinds of things to a girl. Jasper finally had enough and set Royce straight after he believed that he had nearly killed me. He hasn't bothered me since due to a fear of my brother, and I'm very sorry that he almost hurt you that night in Port Angeles."

"That's all right," I quickly told her. "It was a good thing that Jazz showed up when he did, though."

"Yes, it was," Rosalie agreed with a smile. "You know, it may not have seemed like it at first, but I am very glad that Jasper found you, Alice. I was just… a little jealous since his first attempt at a relationship with a human worked. But I'm past that now, and I see that you are the one thing that had made his life complete. His past was even harder than mine because of what he was forced to endure during our human life and his early vampire years in the South. Jasper deserves someone as wonderful as you."

"So do you, Rose."

Rosalie and I both looked up, seeing that Emmett and Carlisle were standing near the doorway of the waiting room, simply watching us. I was shocked. Even my oldest brother was handsome as a vampire…

But I was still a little hesitant as I scooted back a little in my chair, remembering what had happened when Edward was first turned. However, Emmett turned to look at me and smiled before turning his attention back to Rosalie. If his focus was on her, I should be safe… in theory.

"I heard your story, Rose, and you can't say that your past wasn't hard also," Emmett continued, slowly walking toward Rosalie as she rose to her feet and stood in front of me, just in case. "Yours was better than mine, though. I can only say that I was mauled unexpectedly by a bear."

Rosalie laughed a little as Emmett stopped in front of her. "At least you had people here that cared about you," she muttered, her smile instantly vanishing. "At least you weren't alone, like I was. Like I still am…"

Emmett sighed, his playful nature gone as he reached forward and took her hands in his. "Rosalie…" he said quietly, raising his black eyes to look into her golden ones. "I meant to tell you this when I asked you to the dance, but… I want you to know that I love you, and I'm here if you choose to accept me. You don't have to be alone anymore, Rosalie."

By the look on Rosalie's face, I was sure that she would cry if she were able. I knew those strong feelings for my brother were there, and since he was now a vampire… She took a deep, shuddering breath as she looked down at hers and Emmett's joined hands, tightening her hold around them. "Yes, Emmett," she replied, raising her gaze back up to meet his. "Yes, I will go to the dance with you. Yes, I do accept you. Yes, I love you-!"

Her sentence was cut off by Emmett's lips suddenly meeting hers in a kiss, and I smiled when I saw Rosalie more than happily return it as my brother's arms wound around her waist. I looked over at Carlisle, seeing that he was beaming as he watched his daughter. At that moment, I knew that this was the reason that he had spared her.

* * *

Edward and Bella walked me back to the cabin after dinner since Rosalie had taken Emmett away from the campsite to hunt and Jasper hadn't joined us. He was probably still talking to the wolves about breaching the treaty for a second time to save my other brother. The fact that he had been gone for so long made me worried that maybe something had gone wrong…

"Well, if you don't mind, Alice, Edward and I are going to go for a walk," Bella said once we reached our cabin. She and Edward hadn't found the tracker while Emmett was being rushed to the hospital, but they were still keeping a lookout for any sign of him.

"Isn't the plan _not_ to leave me alone?" I asked sarcastically. That's what it had been for the last month anyway…

Edward smiled at me before leaning forward and kissing the top of my head. "You won't be alone, Alice," he answered. "We'll see you later, all right?" Then, he took Bella's hand in his and pulled her away from the cabin, soon disappearing from sight into the trees.

I sighed, unlocking the cabin door and pushing it open. What I saw and heard surprised me.

The first sound that reached my ears was a gentle, beautiful melody being played on a guitar, and a smile appeared on my face when I saw Jasper sitting on Rosalie's bed, appearing to be deep in thought as he played. "I'm sorry that I wasn't at dinner tonight," he muttered as I closed the door behind me and slipped off my shoes. "I was trying to get this song perfect, and I lost track of time."

"That's all right, Jazz," I said, sitting down on the bed beside him. "What is this song? It's one of the most beautiful things I've ever heard."

Jasper gave me a small smile as he continued to play. "It's your lullaby," he told me quietly.

I gasped, surprised. Jasper had written this for _me_? "I love it!" I replied enthusiastically with a smile of my own. "I just can't believe you wrote it. Rose told me that you wrote one for her when you were younger, but…"

"Well, this one was a lot more difficult to put together," Jasper said softly.

"Really? How come?"

Jasper shrugged. "Different feelings," he muttered off-handedly. "Different emotions to get across…"

I cut him off by suddenly leaning forward and pressing my lips to his, mimicking what Emmett had done to Rosalie earlier. Jasper stopped playing the song that was now my lullaby, quickly setting his guitar down on the floor before leaning forward and returning the kiss with more intensity. He gently pushed me down on the bed, completely lying lightly on top of me. I placed my hand on his sturdy, ravaged chest, smiling slightly when he placed his hand on my side. Though I knew that we weren't going to get too far, I was suddenly glad that there weren't any windows near us. Someone could completely get the wrong idea if they saw us like this…

Then, I had to pull away to breathe, but Jasper just moved down to my neck. I closed my eyes as I tried to catch my breath, and once I was ready, I pulled Jasper's lips back up to mine. My heart continued to quicken, and I attempted to deepen the kiss.

Unfortunately, he wouldn't seem to let me, so I concentrated on tracing the scars I could barely feel on his chest with my fingertip. Jasper intensified the kiss slightly at my touch, and I couldn't concentrate on much of anything after that.

Jasper's hand slowly slid down my side to my hip, my heart racing at the feeling. But then, he pulled away, taking a deep breath before placing his forehead against mine. "Slow down a minute," he muttered, his breathing mirroring mine. "Your emotions are running very high. I don't know what would have happened if… But anyway, just understand that we can't go too far in terms of our physical relationship. I know that we're testing my limits, but I don't want to push it too far. I'm hesitant to even attempt to deepen our kisses, but we definitely can't do what Mike was asking you about that one day at lunch. I could easily hurt or even kill you, and I don't want to take that chance with you."

I felt color rush to my face at the painful reminder of that conversation. I hadn't really been thinking of doing _that_ with Jasper… had I? I wasn't exactly sure at the moment. "Okay, I can understand that," I told him. "But I completely trust that you won't hurt me."

The look in Jasper's eyes told me that he wished he could feel the same, but I wouldn't allow him to voice his fears aloud as I pulled his lips down to mine again, knowing that he wouldn't harm me no matter how afraid he was.

**A/N**: Okay, that's it for that one. They're obviously not going to do anything, lol. But, I hoped you enjoyed this chapter. The more I write with her, the more I really like Rosalie's character. I hope you guys feel the same after this chapter. Thanks for reading! Your reviews are greatly appreciated! And, here's the next preview! I know you guys will recognize this part.

**Next Chapter**: _Baseball, the Great Cullen Past Time_

"_Jazz, what's with the hat?" I asked, my voice still thick with sleep._

"_Oh, this?" Jasper raised his eyes to the baseball cap that was resting on top of his blond hair. "We're going to play baseball, what else?"_

Xxx

_"All right, being the referee, you have a very important job," Esme told me as she came up beside me and put her arm around my shoulders. "You have to watch these guys really carefully since they like to cheat."_

Xxx

_Jasper dropped the bat and was at my side in an instant. I dug my face into his chest as he wrapped me tightly in his arms and held me close, and I felt somewhat better in his protective embrace. At least, I was calm enough to answer, "He's coming."_

Xxx

_"There are three vampires headed our way. Nomads," Carlisle said. "I'm not exactly sure what their intentions are, but they heard us playing…"_

"_Their intentions aren't good," Edward muttered, a certain venom to his voice that was uncharacteristic of him. "I can hear one of their thoughts. He wants Alice."_

Xxx

_A smile appeared on his face as if he could sense my fear, which I'm sure he could. He took a step forward as well, his gaze never leaving me as he laughed._

"_Hello, Alice."_


	24. Chapter 23: The Great Cullen Past Time

**Disclaimer**: Uh… nope, not mine, lol.

**A/N**: Hey, I'm back! Sorry, guys, but I've been sick for the last couple of days, and so I haven't been able to update. Thank you so much for your reviews! Reviews equal medicine, lol. But uh, so I don't keep you too much longer, should we push forward and go to the famous baseball game?

_Chapter 23- Baseball, the Great Cullen Past Time_

Fortunately, Jasper's negotiations with the wolves over the turning of Emmett had gone well. In addition, two of the La Push teens, I believe that it had been Embry and Quil, had seen Rosalie rush him to Carlisle, so they knew it had been an emergency. Sam was getting extremely frustrated, however, since Carlisle had already changed two people under their agreement without consequence. He had even threatened Jasper by telling him that he couldn't control what would happen if someone else was turned…

But, as the end of July neared, nothing else happened where Carlisle would have to change someone, and Rosalie and Emmett returned to the camp before they were missed too much by the other human campers. Just like Edward, my oldest brother had responded well to the "vegetarian" lifestyle, a fact that seemed to be bothering Jasper greatly.

"I just don't understand it," he said quietly one night as I lay in his arms, the two of us alone in the cabin I was supposed to be sharing with my assigned roommates. But Bella and Edward were helping to patrol the campground with Esme, and Rosalie and Emmett… well, I wasn't quite sure where they had gone off to. "I've dealt with newborns before. They are always unruly, always unable to control their bloodlust. Monsters. But your brothers adjusted so well…"

Sighing, I continued to absently run my fingers over the slightly raised scars on the skin of Jasper's neck and partly exposed chest. "Things are different, Jazz," I replied softly, my voice beginning to sound sleepy. "Emmett and Edward are different. Maybe they held on to most of their humanity because they were surrounded by vampires to help them adjust, because they couldn't stand to hurt the humans around them…"

Jasper sighed as well as he ran his hand through my hair. "Possibly, but I still cannot understand why…" he muttered, his sentence trailing off. But then, he looked down at me with a small smile. "I know that there's a certain human that _I_ couldn't stand to let be hurt."

I raised my gaze to meet his, my smile mirroring the one that graced his perfect lips. "And who would that be, Jazz?" I asked in a teasing tone.

"Hmm… You know, I can't remember her name…" Jasper answered thoughtfully, appearing as though he was truly struggling to remember just to annoy me. "Was it… Jessica? No, too obnoxious… Angela? No, that isn't right either. Too quiet… Maybe it was… Mary…"

"You used my actual first name," I muttered with surprise.

Jasper's smile widened as his eyes shone in the faint traces of moonlight filtering in through the window. "I know," he replied, running his cold fingers over my cheek. "But as I've told you before, I much prefer Alice."

I laughed a little, but it slowly died away as my lips found their way to Jasper's. He returned the kiss, but then I moved so that I was lying comfortably on top of him. We broke it after a moment, and I simply smiled as I looked down at him as I tried to get used to this. Normally, we were flipped. But there was still something that I wanted to try with him… not that far, of course, since I myself wasn't ready to go that far…

"Are you sure you don't want to try?" I asked quietly.

"Try what?" Jasper looked confused, though I could see some traces of nervousness in his golden eyes.

"To… to try to deepen our kiss," I answered, laying my chin on his chest. "It's not going too far…"

But Jasper sighed when he realized what I meant, his gaze moving away from me for a second before going back to my dark eyes. "I don't think that would be a good idea just yet," he told me, placing his hand lightly on my back. "I may have better control around you than any other human, but I don't know how far my limits are. I don't want to hurt you…"

"You won't," I muttered confidently. "I just want you to believe me, Jazz."

"I want to believe you, Alice, and that doesn't mean that we can't try at some point," Jasper whispered, his eyes faltering. "It's just-!"

However, I didn't allow him to finish his sentence as I leaned forward and kissed him again while sending him repeated waves of my strong love and confidence. After another minute, Jasper quickly flipped us over so that I was now beneath him, and the kiss intensified. Then, completely trusting him, I tried to deepen the kiss. After a hesitant moment since he was still being hit with my powerful emotions, Jasper's lips slowly parted beneath mine.

But before I could actually go through with it, there was a quiet knock at the cabin door. Jasper was off me in an instant, not wanting to be seen by whoever had come. "I'll come back soon when you're finished. Have fun," he told me quietly before disappearing through the window and shutting it behind him.

I sighed, wondering who was knocking at midnight as I climbed down from the top bunk and opened the door, careful to block the view of the other two empty beds from whoever was standing on the other side. I was surprised to see Jessica, Angela, and a girl who I knew by the name of Lauren on the other side. "What are you guys doing here?"

"We're going to toilet paper some of the guy cabins," Jessica answered with a broad smile as she held up a roll. "Do you wanna' come with? Our main targets are Mike, Eric, and Tyler, but we can hit your brothers and Jasper's cabin too if you like."

"Well, Rosalie and Bella are still sleeping, but… okay." I smiled in return as I stepped out of the cabin, grabbing the key before shutting the door and locking it. Then, I caught an extra roll when Lauren tossed it to me as we began our walk down the path. Though I knew that Jasper, Edward, and Emmett wouldn't be surprised by this harmless sabotage, I always loved a good practical joke.

And the looks on Mike, Eric, and Tyler's faces would be priceless.

* * *

My eyes suddenly snapped open when a loud crash echoed around me and a bright flash lit up the cabin for a second, but when I heard the sound of heavy rain hitting the window, I calmed down a bit when I realized that it was only a storm. I then heard a quiet laugh in my ear, and I turned my head to look at the owner of the cold arm that was wrapped tightly around my waist. A smiled appeared on my face when my gaze landed on Jasper, but my eyes narrowed when I saw what was on his head.

"Jazz, what's with the hat?" I asked, my voice still thick with sleep.

"Oh, this?" Jasper raised his eyes to the baseball cap that was resting on top of his blond hair. "We're going to play baseball, what else?"

My eyes widened with shock. "_Baseball_?!" I said. "In _this_ weather?! Jazz, that's crazy!" I looked out the window at the gray sky as rain fell heavily while another bolt of lightning lit up the cabin.

But Jasper only laughed at my disbelief. "We can only play during a thunderstorm, Alice," he replied. "In Forks, we can play a lot more often, but I wasn't sure if we would get the chance to have a game here. I'm glad we get one."

I still couldn't believe my ears. "While you guys do that, I think I'll go and watch the indoor pool tournament…"

"Nonsense," Jasper told me with a smile, kissing my forehead. "Esme would love to have you as a referee."

"Referee?" I repeated. "I don't know, Jazz. Will I be able to survive being a referee in a game of vampire baseball?"

Jasper smiled again, this time kissing my lips quickly. "Don't worry. Esme will be there to help you. Everyone's anxious to play, especially Edward and Emmett since it's their first game. Hurry and get changed, and I'll run and get you a rain poncho to keep you dry."

About twenty minutes later, after a quick breakfast of a glass of milk, an orange, and a bowl of Cap'n Crunch, I was on Jasper's back as he ran me through the forest away from the campsite. I kept my eyes shut tightly, hoping that my food decided to cooperate and stay down as rain pelted my face. It had slowed down slightly, but it was still uncomfortable, and we soon slowed to a stop as Jasper once again placed me on solid ground.

Once I had gathered my bearings and saw the rest of the Cullen family, now including Emmett and Edward, standing around the giant clearing, I gathered that the teams went as follows:

Emmett, Rosalie, and now Jasper were on one team, Rosalie being the pitcher for them.

Edward, Bella, and Carlisle were on the other team, Bella being their pitcher.

Esme was the permanent catcher for everyone, and I, as Jasper had said back at the cabin, was the referee. I had no idea what I was getting myself into with this, but I knew I would find out soon. Besides, I had to admit that this was much better than some dumb pool competition…

"About time you guys showed up!" Emmett shouted with mock complaint from the field. "We're up first, Jazz! Carlisle, Ed, and Bella are out in the field!"

"All right! You bat first, Emmett!" Jasper replied loudly before turning to me with a broad smile. "This is the one time where our strength doesn't have to be restrained, where we don't have to hide what we are."

I couldn't help but smile at his excitement as he placed an extra hat on my head under the hood of my yellow poncho, kissing me tenderly but with a little more passion than usual. And even though he was smiling, the action made me feel slightly nervous. I looked deep into his golden eyes as he gazed down at me, and though I could feel his love and content as he looked at me, I could also feel the concern behind the positive emotions. Was there something wrong? Was it something involving the tracker? Had they seen him? I wasn't sure… But before I could ask him, he hurried away to stand by Rosalie and Emmett as they picked out their bats.

"All right, being the referee, you have a very important job," Esme told me as she came up beside me and put her arm around my shoulders. "You have to watch these guys really carefully since they like to cheat."

"Ah, come on, Esme, we don't cheat!" Bella said with a smile as she passed us with the baseball in her hand. Edward and Carlisle were already so far back at the other end of the clearing that I could hardly see them.

"Of course you do!" Esme called after her as she stood behind home plate, pulling me along with her. Then, she turned to face me with a smile. "Ready, dear?"

"I… I think so." It wasn't that I was exactly nervous. In fact, I was much more excited than anything to see how vampires played baseball.

"All right, then," Esme said, a wide grin on her face. "Batter up!"

Emmett approached the plate, taking a couple of test swings with his bat. I was curious to see how strong he now was with is new vampire abilities since he had great strength in his human life… "Show me what you got, Sis!" he shouted tauntingly to Bella, who stood on the pitcher's mound. _Sis_? Wow, they were close already.

Bella grinned from the mound, seeming to be unfazed by the taunt. "You asked for it, Emmett!" she replied. Then, she threw the ball faster than I could even see.

My brother swung the bat in response, and I jumped when a loud crash echoed around the clearing. At first, I thought that it was part of the thunderstorm raging around us, but then I watched as Emmett threw the bat and began running toward first base- which was so far away I could hardly even see it- and I instantly realized that the sound hadn't been thunder. It had been the sound of the bat coming in contact with the baseball.

I tried to keep up as I watched Edward run back toward the trees as he went after the nearly invisible ball, but Emmett was too strong, and it just got over his head. But Edward was very fast. He grabbed the baseball from the weeds quickly and dashed back into the clearing, throwing the ball to Esme at home plate just as Emmett approached it. It was close, _very_ close, but my oldest brother was…

"Safe," I announced.

"Yeah!" Emmett cried, hugging Rosalie tightly as Edward and Carlisle repositioned themselves in the outfield and Esme threw the baseball back to Bella.

"Good call, Alice," Esme told me with a smile, putting her arm around me for a moment before she crouched back down behind home plate. "Come on, guys! Next batter, hurry up!"

A broad smile appeared on my face when I saw that Jasper was up next. He stood in front of us, flipping the bat in his hand in a way I'm sure was his way of showing off slightly, and this was the first time that I had taken notice of the fact that he was left-handed. Interesting…

Bella pitched to him, and there was another loud crash when Jasper hit the ball. I definitely understood why they needed to play in a thunderstorm. Any poor, unsuspecting humans nearby would have been terrified if they heard the loud sounds of what could have been mistaken for thunder on a sunny, cloudless day. The thought made me smile.

Jasper began running toward first base as the ball flew toward the back of the clearing. Edward and Carlisle both ran for it, ending up crashing into each other- the sound resembled two smashing boulders- and having the ball drop between them, which allowed Jasper to reach third base safely. Rosalie, who was up next, batted hard enough to get him home, but was out herself at second base.

As the game continued and the two teams continued to switch, the rain slowly lessened. The thunder remained, however, so the game was able to go on. When the rain completely stopped, I took off the yellow plastic poncho and left it forgotten in the grass behind me before straightening out the hat on my head. Even though I didn't mind watching normal baseball on T.V. back at home, I knew it would never be the same after witnessing vampire baseball. There just wasn't nearly as much drama and action and excitement when humans played…

The best part, though, was that it seemed to be a never-ending game. Though the two teams were very competitive when it came to how many runs each had, there didn't seem to be an end in sight. Innings didn't seem to matter like it did for us humans- or the innings that they did have may have just been stretched out much longer since it was difficult to get an out. I smiled broadly as I called Bella safe at third base. This was definitely one of the best days of the camp so far! I might have to stop by one day when they're playing in Forks…

But about half an hour later, everything drastically changed for the worse. Bella was pitching… Edward and Carlisle were waiting out in the field… Emmett was standing impatiently on second base… Jasper was up to bat… Rosalie was on deck… Esme was crouched behind home plate with her glove held out before her… and suddenly, I couldn't see any of them. My vision blurred before it was replaced with the image of three people walking toward us, all barefoot. Judging by their crimson eyes, they were the "typical" vampires, not like the ones I loved…

Once had olive-toned skin and black hair that fell to his shoulders in layers. Beside him was a female with flaming red hair that fell about halfway down her back. On his other side was a male that had his blond hair pulled back behind his head in a ponytail. I knew him… I had seen him many times before…

I was brought back to reality when I heard the loud sound of the baseball pitched by Bella hitting Esme's glove. Blinking a couple of times to clear my vision completely, I saw that everyone was staring at Jasper in surprise since he hadn't even swung the bat. Instead, his golden eyes were trained directly on me, filled with worry. He must have felt my emotions leave me…

"Alice, what did you see?" he asked quietly, his tone laced with concern.

My voice failed me- I couldn't answer. My eyes darted to Jasper's face in a panic. I couldn't believe that I had seen this vampire. Was he finally coming for me now?

Jasper dropped the bat and was at my side in an instant. I dug my face into his chest as he wrapped me tightly in his arms and held me close, and I felt somewhat better in his protective embrace. At least, I was calm enough to answer, "He's coming."

The rest of the Cullens must have been able to hear me because Esme, Bella, and Rosalie immediately surrounded us in a half circle as soon as the words left my mouth. Carlisle, Edward, and Emmett tensed angrily as they faced the trees for a long moment before rushing over to us.

"There are three vampires headed our way. Nomads," Carlisle said. "I'm not exactly sure what their intentions are, but they heard us playing…"

"Their intentions aren't good," Edward muttered, a certain venom to his voice that was uncharacteristic of him. "I can hear one of their thoughts. He wants Alice…"

The Cullens drew in a tighter circle around me while Jasper pulled me even closer to him. It was clear that they weren't going to let me be touched. But I still clung to Jasper with fear. I don't think I've ever felt more afraid before. But the fear wasn't for myself. It was for the seven vampires surrounding me…

Emmett snarled angrily, his intense eyes on the trees across the clearing from us. "They won't even get close to her," he promised darkly.

"Maybe we can get Alice out of here before they arrive," Bella suddenly said. "Jazz, why don't you take her while we distract them?"

"Good idea," Jasper agreed as he began to pull me toward the trees on our side of the clearing. "I'll bring her somewhere away from the campsite so they won't follow her to the other humans and-!"

"You're too late, Jasper," Edward growled, his anger-filled eyes on the trees across from us. "They're here."

As soon as the words left his mouth, three vampires came through the trees and entered the clearing, the same three I had just seen- the dark-haired male that seemed to be the leader of their small group, the red-headed female, and the blond-haired male… the one I knew. Even from how far away they were from us, I could imagine his crimson eyes on me…

It didn't take them long to cross the clearing and stop before us, and Carlisle stepped forward to greet them with Edward and Emmett on either side of him in a protective manner. Rosalie, Bella, and Esme took a couple of steps forward as well, forming a defensive line in front of me while I stayed where I was behind them in Jasper's tight arms. I was safest there…

Out of the three new vampires, the male with the olive-toned skin took a step forward to meet Carlisle's greeting. But before any words could be exchanged, the male with the blond ponytail suddenly turned his gaze to me, his deep, crimson eyes boring into mine. I stared back at him with a new sense of fear, knowing that this was the vampire that I had seen in my visions and my nightmares… that he was the tracker… the vampire after me…

A smile appeared on his face as if he could sense my fear, which I'm sure he could. He took a step forward as well, his gaze never leaving me, as he laughed.

"Hello, Alice."

**A/N**: And… another cliffie, lol. Sorry, guys. I promise I will update as soon as I can. And I couldn't resist throwing the bat flip in there! It was so cool in the movie. Okay, anyway, I hope you enjoyed it! Your reviews are much appreciated. And, here's the preview!

**Next Chapter**: _The Nomads_

_Suddenly, Jasper's eyes widened in shock before his expression turned to one of pain as he doubled over. I gasped, trying to run to him but was immediately held back by Esme. I tried to fight out of her arms as I watched him drop to one knee, looking into the tracker's hate-filled eyes as he stared down at the pained form of Jasper… but to no avail. Her hold on me was too strong…_

"_Jasper!"_

Xxx

_Laurent looked interested in the fact that we were all so close. "Forgive me. I did not realize that you were a… a _family_," he muttered. "Especially with a _human_ involved." Jasper growled angrily, holding me tighter as he glared up at James._

Xxx

"_I swear I will tear your head off and watch you burn before I let you even get _close_ to Alice," Jasper hissed fiercely._

Xxx

_"And how many of you are going to die in the attempt?" I demanded, my tears slowly beginning to fall. "James is only after me, Jasper. I'm not going to let any of you die for me!"_

_Surprisingly, a lot of ferocity appeared on Jasper's face. "Well, I'm not going to allow you to simply go to him if that's what you want to do, Alice," he replied, his tone having a harsh edge to it as he placed his hands on the chair on either side of me._

Xxx

_I looked up into Jasper's intense, golden eyes, sighing as tears came to mine. "Be careful," I whispered, running my fingers over his cheek._

_Jasper caught my hand and gently lowered it. "You too," he replied quietly, wrapping his arm around my waist and pulling me closer to him. "But I'll come back to you as soon as I can, I promise."_


	25. Chapter 24: The Nomads

**Disclaimer**: Nope, none of the characters are mine. Sorry I couldn't come up with anything more creative, lol. Doesn't work when you have a cold or whatever it is that I have…

**A/N**: Hey, thanks for your reviews, guys! They made me feel better, but alas, I still have this stupid cold thing. I think part of it has to do with the dandelions beginning to bloom around here too, and my allergies are starting to kick in… But, anyway, enough with my problems, lol. The song used in this chapter is "Against All Odds" by Phil Collins. I don't own that either. Oh, one other thing. I completely forgot my preview for the next chapter at my house, but I will try my best to throw one together for you guys at the end. I've been forgetting everything today… But, okay, thanks again, and enjoy the next chapter!

_Chapter 24- The Nomads_

"Hello, Alice."

Everything happened so fast that I could hardly see what was going on.

All seven members of my vampire family formed a protective group before me, Carlisle and Esme closest to me with Jasper at the front nearest the nomads. The blond-haired tracker growled angrily and crouched into an offensive position, frustrated that the Cullens were blocking me from him, while Jasper did the same. Emmett and Edward crouched from behind him, ready to face the other two vampires if it came down to a fight.

"No reason to be hostile, the tracker said while Jasper snarled quietly. "I just want to express how pleased I am to finally meet Alice."

"You won't get near her," Jasper snapped in a threatening way. Edward took a small step forward to stand beside Jasper as he growled angrily, and I assumed that he didn't like the thoughts he was getting from this blond-haired vampire…

But the tracker ignored my brother as he turned his crimson eyes to Jasper, staring at him intently. My anxiety rose when no one said a word…

Suddenly, Jasper's eyes widened in shock before his expression turned to one of pain as he doubled over. I gasped, trying to run to him but was immediately held back by Esme. I tried to fight out of her arms as I watched him drop to one knee, looking into the tracker's hate-filled eyes as he stared down at the pained form of Jasper… but to no avail.

"Jasper!" I cried, still pathetically trying to escape from Esme. I knew that the tracker was sending powerful waves of hate to Jasper, but how he had known that he could feel emotions, I wasn't so sure… "_Jasper_!"

Emmett snarled loudly and angrily as he leapt forward to stand before Jasper protectively with Edward and Rosalie on either side of him, and Bella quickly knelt down beside her brother as she whispered words of comfort to him. Carlisle hurried forward as well, placing his hand on his tense shoulder with worry as he gave the tracker a dark, warning look. The female with flaming red hair took a step forward with a snarl of her own, but before anyone could make another move, the dark-haired leader raised his hand in an almost peaceful gesture.

"Come, James. Enough now."

James. So that was the name of the tracker that had been hunting me… that had been calling me… that was going to kill me. After a long moment, James moved his burning gaze away from Jasper as he took a step back while the female did the same. Jasper instantly relaxed, and I broke away from Esme since I caught her off guard, kneeling down beside him and hugging him tightly. A minute later, Jasper slowly wrapped his arms around me and held me close to him protectively while Rosalie, Emmett, Edward, and Bella relaxed slightly around us.

"I am sorry about the attack on a member of your coven," the dark-haired vampire continued. "My name is Laurent. And this is James and his mate, Victoria. We are just passing through." Edward snarled at his words. Clearly, this wasn't entirely true…

Carlisle took a couple of steps forward so that he was standing in front of Jasper and I in a shielding way. "I am Carlisle. I'm afraid that is not something that is to be taken lightly," he replied heavily. "Jasper is my son. And this is my daughter Rosalie, her mate Emmett, my daughter Bella, her mate Edward, and my wife Esme. Alice is also with us." He gestured to us all in turn.

Laurent looked interested in the fact that we were all so close. "Forgive me. I did not realize that you were a… a _family_," he muttered. "Especially with a _human_ involved." Jasper growled angrily, holding me close as he glared up at James. There must have been something in his emotions that he didn't like…

"Alice is one of us," Carlisle repeated firmly, a dark edge to his voice that was usually never there.

"You're not going to get anywhere near her," Jasper added from where we were still kneeling on the ground. I clung to him tightly, grateful for their protection though I was still worried about them being hurt.

James turned his attention to Jasper again, smirking cruelly before walking toward us. Our siblings and Esme tensed around us as Carlisle stepped in front of him to block his way. The tracker's red eyes narrowed in frustration as he growled threateningly at Carlisle, but then he looked down at where I was wrapped in Jasper's arms, laughing a little. "Don't think he'll be enough to save you, Alice, especially with his weakness involving the emotions of others," he muttered to me in an almost cheerful tone. "I've kept this hunt going on for much too long, my dear, and I can guarantee that you will be mine."

I cringed as the angry growl in Jasper's throat escalated while he leapt to his feet, Edward and Bella immediately kneeling down beside me to take his place. I had never seen him so angry before… He pushed past Carlisle, who grabbed his arm to hold him back, to stand directly in front of James, who smirked in response to the intense anger coming from him.

"James…" Laurent warned from where he stood behind him.

But he was ignored.

"I swear I will tear your head off and watch you burn before I let you even get _close_ to Alice," Jasper hissed fiercely, a dangerous venom to his tone that was unusual.

At hearing the threat, the female, Victoria, stepped forward angrily to defend her mate while Emmett stood beside Jasper and gave her a warning growl in return. But James seemed to be ignoring everything going on around him, his red eyes only on Jasper's intense, golden ones. "We shall see," he replied calmly, but there was a definite malice to his tone. "We shall see who will have Alice… and who will be the first to burn."

Great, my life was now a challenge… Then, with one final smirk, James turned and began to walk away from our larger group with Victoria following behind him.

Laurent hung back for a moment, his hesitant gaze passing over me before resting on Carlisle as he pulled Jasper back. "I am sorry," he muttered before turning and following after James and Victoria. And as soon as they had appeared, they were gone.

Before I even realized what was happening, I was in Jasper's arms and was being run through the forest at an inhuman speed that I was still far from being used to. Since this was the first time that I had actually kept my eyes open while we were running, I was amazed that we weren't bumping into anything…

"Let's go to the hospital building," Carlisle said from where he was running beside us, being able to hide his anxiousness that I'm sure he was feeling. "We need to have a meeting with the wolves to determine our plan from here."

That was when I noticed that the rest of the Cullens were also running around us. Carlisle was on our right, Esme on our left. Edward was running ahead of us, and Emmett was running behind. Bella was running even farther to our right than Carlisle was while Rosalie was to the left of Esme. They had formed a protective circle around Jasper and I.

The rest of the journey went without a word, and we reached the building where Carlisle worked only a couple of minutes later. He opened the door, and Jasper and Edward hurriedly stepped into the dark waiting room with me first, but they both stopped immediately before they got too far in and began to look around.

"Someone's here," they said together before looking over at each other. Emmett rushed forward to stand near us protectively while Carlisle, Esme, Rosalie, and Bella came in to stand behind us.

"Peace. I mean the girl no harm."

I watched with surprise as a dark-haired man with red eyes stepped into the waiting room through the doorway across the room from us. It was Laurent.

"What are _you_ doing here?" Emmett demanded angrily since this vampire was with the one that was trying to take my life. But Carlisle placed his hand in a calming manner on Emmett's shoulder as he walked past him to stand before Laurent.

"Speak your purpose."

Laurent sighed, his eyes flickering with an emotion that I couldn't decode. "I am here to express my apologies for the actions of James," he told us. "But once his mind is sent on something, it cannot be changed. There is nothing that I can do to stop him now."

"Aren't you the leader of your coven?" Rosalie asked, walking forward to stand beside Emmett, who placed his arm around her protectively as he looked at Laurent with suspicion. "That's the way it appeared back at the clearing."

"No, I am not the leader of our coven. James is," Laurent answered her quietly. "I only joined with him and his mate about a century ago."

Jasper tensed around me. Clearly, the fact that James was the coven's leader was _not_ a good thing…

"Why are you doing this?" Carlisle wondered. "We appreciate your sympathy, but I am unsure of its purpose. You are a part of James' coven, not ours."

Laurent shrugged slightly, and I could see that he was even somewhat unsure of his intent. "I suppose I am here to warn you that James is not a force to be taken lightly, and neither is his mate, Victoria," he said. "Now that the challenge has been placed, James will do anything he has to do to reach the human. He's been following her for far too long to give up on her now."

"And my protectiveness of her only made his determination greater," Jasper muttered with dread. "He won't stop until he achieves his goal now, no matter who gets in his way…"

Edward glanced over at him at his statement. For a moment, I thought that he was going to say something to blame Jasper for this mess we were now in. But instead, he caught me by surprise and said, "_Our_ protectiveness of Alice made it worse." Jasper slowly raised his eyes to meet his gaze and gave him a slight smile.

"Well, it does not matter. Alice is a part of our family, and we protect our family. We will do whatever has to be done." Carlisle's eyes shone as he looked over at me, and I couldn't help but smile at his conviction. But there was also a deep undercurrent of concern in those eyes…

"James is lethal," Laurent concluded, his gaze wary as it passed over us. "He will not stop hunting her, even if faced with death. But your family appears to be strong. I believe you may stand a chance if you plan carefully. I wish you luck."

Carlisle smiled as he returned his attention to Laurent. "Thank you," he replied. "I realize how much danger you are putting yourself in by helping us."

Laurent smiled in return. "It does not matter," he told him. "I was planning on leaving their coven on my own. The worst they can do to me now is force me out. But just understand that the girl's life is no longer in my hands. Farewell." Then, without another word, Laurent walked past our large group and left the hospital, never stopping to look back.

"Oh, great. So now James is going to kill me?" I asked, somewhat sarcastically.

"No, my love," Jasper answered quietly as he gently sat me down in a chair. "We won't let him get to you."

I glared up at him, tears burning angrily in my eyes. I admit it- I was afraid now. Not for the fact that my own life was going to end, but for the one I was looking at, the one I loved… for the rest of the vampires gathered around me…

"And how many of you are going to die in the attempt?" I demanded, my tears slowly beginning to fall. "James is only after me, Jasper. I'm not going to let any of you die for me!"

Surprisingly, a lot of ferocity appeared on Jasper's face. "Well, I'm not going to allow you to simply go to him if that's what you want to do, Alice," he replied, his tone having a harsh edge to it as he placed his hands on the arms of the chair on either side of me. He had never spoken to me like this before… "How do you think any of us would feel if you gave up your life to him? I'm sorry, Alice, I am not going to allow that to happen. We will do everything we have to do to keep you safe. Believe me, it's harder to kill a vampire than you think."

Despite the tears slowly coming from my eyes, I smirked slightly. "What? No simple stake through the heart or splash of holy water?"

Jasper rolled his eyes in disbelief as he sighed and sat down in the chair beside me, laughing a little as he put his arm around me. "You've been watching too many vampire movies, Alice," he muttered. "No, you don't kill us by putting stake through our heart or throwing holy water on us. Instead, you have to tear us apart and burn the pieces so we can't regenerate. I've had to do it so many times…"

As soon as the words were out of his mouth, I remembered the painful vision that I had earlier in the camp of James doing that very thing to Jasper. It had been terrible… But, I successfully pushed the thought away as I rested my head in the crook of Jasper's neck. I sighed heavily, breathing in his calming and subtle scent as my tears finally stopped. "I'm sorry, Jazz," I muttered.

"For what?" Jasper asked quietly. "If anything, I should be the one apologizing to you for this."

I sighed again as I shook my head, placing my hand on top of his cold one that was resting on my knee. "I don't know," I answered truthfully. "I'm just… sorry… I guess it's a feeling that comes with the concept of being faced with your own death…"

"Listen to me, Alice. That isn't going to happen," Jasper told me with a feeling of confidence, gently kissing the top of my head. "The tracker won't get to you. I won't allow him to."

It was a statement that I wanted to believe but couldn't bring myself to have faith in. I guess it had been the way that James had looked into my eyes that gave me the feeling that he was going to stop at nothing to get to me… to taste my blood… to end my life…

"Carlisle, what do we do?" Edward suddenly asked in an impatient tone. "We can't just sit around anymore. We have to get Alice out of here!"

"Edward, calm down," Carlisle answered him as evenly as he could, placing his hand on his shoulder. "We will figure out a way to get out of this situation. But if you're so anxious, why don't you take Bella and find the wolves to bring them here? We need to come up with a plan."

* * *

After Edward and Bella left the hospital, the atmosphere in the waiting room was very tense. I was now sitting on Jasper's lap with my head resting on his shoulder while Carlisle, Esme, Rosalie, and Emmett sat across the room from us, speaking hurriedly in such quiet tones that I couldn't understand them. I absently ran my fingers over the cold, stone skin of Jasper's hand, but no words passed between us for a stretch of time that felt as though it went on forever.

"Jazz, when did you know that James was after me?" I suddenly asked in nearly a whisper, not wanting to disturb the others in the room. "Was it when I first saw him at the cabin?"

"No," Jasper answered just as quietly for what I presumed to be for the same reason. "I knew before we even reached the camp. That's why I've been keeping such a close eye on you."

"Before? How?" I was shocked.

Jasper laughed a little as he leaned down and kissed the top of my head. "You forget how acute my sense of hearing is, Alice," he said. "When you were listening to your voice message on the bus, I heard every word of it through your phone. That's what gave me the first idea, even though I didn't know James at the time, and it just went on from there."

Of course he would have been able to hear the message James had left for me due to his supersonic hearing. Why hadn't I thought of that? But before I could continue the conversation to keep myself from going crazy, the door to the hospital building opened, and Edward and Bella entered shortly followed by Jacob, Sam, and Billy Black in his wheelchair.

"Ali, you're okay!" Jacob exclaimed with a smile.

"She won't be for long unless we act quickly," Carlisle said solemnly, standing to meet them. "Did my children explain the situation?"

"Somewhat," Billy told him. "They said that the tracker had finally revealed himself and made the threat against Alice. Now, we're trying to figure out what we should do with her."

Carlisle nodded. "Yes, the tracker has put the challenge in place," he confirmed. "Now we have to determine what would be best to do with Alice's safety."

"Well, we could-!" Jacob began, but Billy raised his hand and interrupted him.

"I truly can't believe I'm saying this, Cullen, but I think that we'll allow you to handle the tracker directly," he told Carlisle. "Your family would be better suited to take him on, especially if what I hear about your boy being a fighter is true." His dark eyes quickly moved to where Jasper and I were sitting.

Both Jacob and Sam looked shocked by this statement. Sam got over it quickly and nodded respectfully at the decision, but Jacob wouldn't let it go so easily. "What do you mean you're going to let them take on the tracker alone?!" he demanded heatedly. "We can handle him just as well as they can!" Jasper laughed a little at his words, earning a dark glare from Jacob.

"If it was a true fight, yes, I would suggest we help them fight." Billy turned his wheelchair around to face his grandson. "But this won't be a true fight like you're accustomed to. The tracker will be using stealth to try to reach Alice, and I believe that it will be a fight better suited for the vampires. Now, what I propose we do is continue our watch of the campsite to protect the rest of the students and teachers here so they are not in any danger. Cullen, you have my permission to take Alice from the campsite if that's what needs to be done to keep her safe. There's a small town east of here that she can be taken to. Jacob, Sam. Let's get the rest of the pack and tell them to keep an eye out for the tracker and his mate."

But before they could leave, Carlisle took a small step forward. "Hold on, Billy."

Billy looked over his shoulder since he had already turned his wheelchair around, and Sam and Jacob watched Carlisle carefully as he approached. "Yeah, Cullen?" he asked.

"I just wanted to thank you for all of your help keeping Alice safe this summer," Carlisle answered with a small smile, taking out a piece of paper and a pen and quickly writing something on it. "You can reach me through this number if you need to contact me as we hunt for the tracker."

"You're welcome," Billy said, taking the paper that Carlisle offered him and putting it in his pocket. "It's my pleasure. We all know that Alice is a special girl. Oh, and um… good luck, Cullen. You'll need it."

Carlisle nodded. "Thank you. Best of luck to you too. Keep the other campers safe."

Billy nodded once in return before rolling through the door of the hospital building that Sam held open for him. "Come on, boys. We have some vampires to watch for."

Sam followed Billy outside, but Jacob turned to face Jasper again before leaving. "You had better keep her safe," he muttered, a threat woven into his tone.

"I will." I was still so amazed at how confident Jasper seemed to be about this situation.

Jacob took a deep breath, his gaze landing on me with a mix of sadness and longing before he turned and left as well, closing the door and leaving me behind him.

"I am glad that Billy gave us permission to take you from the camp, Alice, because we were planning on taking you somewhere else," Carlisle said, turning his attention to me once Jacob was gone. "That town he mentioned might be a good place to start."

"Should I take her, Carlisle?" Jasper asked. "You could just give me her car keys."

But Carlisle sighed, and I was instantly on alert. "James would expect you to take her," he answered hesitantly, which made me even more nervous. "We thought that it would be best if we tried to catch him off guard as much as possible…"

My eyes widened with horror as I sat up straight on Jasper's lap. If what Carlisle was saying what I _thought_ he was saying… "Does that mean that I won't be with Jasper?"

"I'm sorry, Alice," Carlisle muttered, his golden eyes filled with sorrow as he looked back at me. "It's for the best."

I looked up at Jasper with fear, a feeling he tried to soothe away by stroking my hair. "No, I don't want to leave you," I whispered anxiously, tightly taking his other hand in both of mine. I had assumed that I would be staying with Jasper. Now that I knew that I wasn't, I was beginning to feel slightly afraid…

"Shh, it's all right, love," Jasper said quietly, kissing my forehead as he tightened his hand around mine. "It'll be all right. We'll be back together soon, I promise." Then, he turned back to Carlisle, still running his hand through my short hair in a comforting manner. "Do we have anything planned?"

"Partly," Carlisle told him. "Since Billy said that we could leave the campsite, Emmett and I are going to take Alice to that small town he mentioned for the night. While we do that, Rosalie and Esme will search for James and Victoria around the woods here to try to draw them out while keeping a watch over the rest of the campers."

"What should we do, Carlisle?" Edward asked as he placed his arm around Bella, and I assumed that he was anxious to do something to help keep me safe.

"Bella, why don't you change clothes with Alice?" Rosalie suddenly suggested. "You're closer to her size than I am, and the scent would help lead the tracker away from her."

"Good idea," Carlisle agreed. "Ladies, if you don't mind what the other is wearing, then you can step into the other room to change."

After a sigh, I reluctantly stood and followed Bella into the other room and shut the door. We stood with our backs to each other for courtesy sake, and I pulled my royal blue t-shirt over my head and passed it back to my best friend.

"I know you're afraid to leave Jasper, Alice, but I promise that everything will work out fine," Bella told me as she handed me her light blue t-shirt. "He's not pleased about leaving you either, believe me."

"That's a bit of an understatement," I muttered, pulling on Bella's beige-colored shorts after handing her my dark blue ones. Then, we both turned to face each other, smiling when we saw our own outfits on the other. "Should we go with shoes too, or do you think it really matters?"

"I don't think it really matters," Bella said thoughtfully, smelling the arm of my t-shirt. "I think I have enough of your scent on my now."

Despite the dire situation, I smiled broadly. "Now all we have to do is cut your hair so it's as short as mine…"

"No!" Bella moaned, grabbing her shoulder-length hair almost protectively. "I like my hair. Besides, it wouldn't grow back."

I couldn't help but laugh at how freaked I had made her. "I'm just kidding, Bells," I told her, grabbing her cold arm and starting to lead her to the other room. "I guess we should see if they have any more of their plan done. They probably want me out of here as quickly as possible…"

When Bella and I entered the waiting room again, I saw that Jasper was standing in front of Carlisle as he was handed a set of keys. "Take Esme's car and head west," Carlisle was saying. "Have Bella sit in front with you as Alice would and have the window down so the scent from her clothes gets into the air. Take Edward with you too. Hopefully, you can lead James far away enough from Alice so you can catch him off guard. Remember to keep in touch."

Jasper nodded, holding the keys tightly in his hand. "I will."

When Bella and I got near to them, he looked up and immediately approached me while Bella went to Rosalie, who was offering her a hair to hold her hair back. I looked up into Jasper's intense golden eyes, sighing as tears came to mine. "Be careful," I whispered, running my fingers over his cheek.

Jasper caught my hand and gently lowered it. "You too," he replied quietly, wrapping his arm around my waist and pulling me closer to him. "But I'll come back to you as soon as I can, I promise." Then, he slowly leaned his head down and met my lips in a kiss.

I returned it, but after a moment, I tried to deepen the kiss since we had almost done it before… and I was unsure it I was truly going to see him again after tonight. I was caught off guard when Jasper's lips parted beneath mine with only a second of hesitation, and for a minute, I wondered if he was having the same fear that I was…

So, in case this was my last chance, I slowly followed through with the deeper kiss. Jasper tensed nervously at the new feeling, but he relaxed again after he got used to it and returned it more willingly. My heart was fluttering as the kiss continued. It was new for me too, but I liked it. And though it was deeper and filled with a little more passion than both of us were used to, it was still very tender.

But then, we broke the kiss, and I sighed and laid my head against his chest. "See, I told you that you wouldn't hurt me," I told him quietly, successfully hiding my smirk from him but not my emotions.

Jasper laughed a little before kissing the top of my head. "Yes, you did," he agreed. "And I must admit, I'm glad you were right. But now, we should probably be going. We have to get the tracker as far away from you as possible."

I took Jasper's hand in mine and squeezed it tightly before backing away from him. "All right. I'll see you soon."

"See you soon." Jasper gently kissed my forehead before he put his arm around Bella's shoulder as if she was me when she approached him, quickly leaving the hospital building with Edward close behind him. I sniffed, trying to blink my rapidly forming tears away as Jasper disappeared from sight. _Would_ I ever see him again? I wasn't sure…

"_How can I just let you walk away?_

_Let you leave without a trace_

_While I stand here taking every breath with you…"_

Then, I jumped when Emmett's arm dropped around my shoulders. "Come on, Sis, let's get you out of here," he muttered, trying not to show his anxiousness as he led me to the door. Carlisle held it open for us, kissing Esme as he wished her and Rosalie luck before he followed after us.

We reached the parking lot in record time. I climbed into the backseat of Carlisle's black Mercedes while he got behind the wheel and Emmett sat beside him in the passenger seat. I glanced at the gold car next to us, seeing that Jasper was behind the wheel with Bella next to him, her window rolled down to let my scent out as Carlisle had told her to. Edward must have been in the backseat. But when Jasper felt my eyes on him, he slowly turned and looked over at me, mouthing three words:

"I love you."

More tears quickly formed in my eyes as I lightly placed my fingers on the window in a longing way, mouthing the words back. Then, I watched as Carlisle nodded to his son as he started the car, and Jasper started Esme's and was the first to back out of the parking lot before he headed toward the exit of the camp. A song that I recognized- and made my tears fall- was on the radio as I watched the gold car drive out of sight…

_"I wish that I could make you turn around_

_Turn around and see me cry_

_There's so much I need to say to you_

_So many reasons why…"_

Then, Carlisle slowly backed out of the parking lot and headed toward the exit after waiting for a few minutes to let Jasper get ahead of us. I sighed, a few more tears falling from my eyes as I leaned my forehead against the window when I realized what was soon going to happen…

_"So take a look at me now_

_Well, there's just an empty space_

_And there's nothing left here_

_To remind me_

_Just the memory of your face…"_

This plan would fail, I knew it would…

_"Now take a look at me now_

'_Cause there's just an empty space_

_But to wait for you_

_Is all I can do_

_And that's what I've gotta' face…"_

James was going to kill me, I knew he would…

_"Take a good look at me now_

'_Cause I'll still be standing here_

_And you coming back to me_

_Is against all odds_

_It's the chance I've gotta' take…"_

I knew that I would never see Jasper again.

**A/N**: All right, there's a bit of a longer chapter for you. I hope you liked it! Poor Alice, huh? But anyway, thanks for reading! Your reviews are much appreciated! And as I said before, I don't have the preview with me, but I'm going to try to throw one together for you! Lol, enjoy! I hope it turns out well.

**Next Chapter**: _Hide and Seek_

_As I watched all of the trees that passed by us in a flash since Carlisle was driving way above the speed limit without getting caught, I suddenly wondered what it would be like to die._

Xxx

_I saw Emmett sit down on the floor in front of the television out of the corner of my eye, and I turned my head and watched as Carlisle stood by the desk with the lamp on it, emptying his silver cell phone and set of keys on it before sitting down on the wooden chair in front of it. He sighed, running his hand through his blond hair. It was an action that made me nervous. I had never seen Carlisle so visibly worried before…_

Xxx

_He knew. At that moment, I knew that James realized that he had been chasing the wrong people, that I wasn't with Jasper. He was angry now, and I knew that would only fuel his determination to come for me…_

Xxx

_Without even looking at the number, I immediately flipped it open and brought it to my ear. "Jasper?" Who else would be calling me?_

_But I heard a soft laugh on the other end, and I sighed and closed my eyes. I guess I shouldn't have been too surprised that it wasn't Jasper's voice that I heard._


	26. Chapter 25: Hide and Seek

**Disclaimer**: Nope, the characters aren't mine! They belong to SM.

**A/N**: Hey, thank you so much for the reviews, guys! We've reached 300 (and plus!), which means that I will throw a special something in at the end of the story! Thank you so much! I'm so glad you enjoyed the last chapter! I thought it would be a good time to broaden out Carlisle's character, as will this one. Um, I am feeling somewhat better. I think it's mainly allergy related, so I'm not overly worried. It's just annoying. Thanks for your concern! Also, it is an amazingly beautiful day here today! It's about 82 I think, and the sun is out and it's just gorgeous! I'm in a great mood, lol. This is my kind of weather. I've been noticing a great song for this story (especially this part) that really helps me along is "I Hate Everything About You" by Three Days Grace. Go figure. But enough rambling from me so I can avoid hairbrush-throwing twins, and enjoy the next chapter!

_ Chapter 25- Hide and Seek_

Our drive to the small town that Billy had mentioned was a silent one for me. A backpack of some of my things- an extra change of Bella's clothes, my iPod, my cell phone, my stuffed black bat, my hairbrush, toothbrush, and other necessities- that someone had packed for me sat on the seat next to me, but I left it relatively untouched as I blankly stared out the window. Carlisle was talking in quick, nearly silent tones to Esme or Jasper so he was updated on James' movements from both groups, and Emmett continuously glanced back at me to see if I was okay before sighing when he got no response and turning back around.

As I watched all of the trees that passed by us in a flash since Carlisle was driving way above the speed limit without getting caught, I suddenly wondered what it would be like to die. Would it be painful, or would it instead be peaceful, as Rosalie had heard it to be? Would there be the often talked about, telltale white light, or would there be nothing but darkness? What about the afterlife? What would that be like? Would it be like the depictions of a mystical city suspended high in the heavens amongst the clouds, or would it simply be a place where you were surrounded by the people that you love as you watched the rest of the people close to your heart from above? Would I be with my parents again? Would Jasper really meet me there? And if he did, would he be the attractive vampire I knew now? Or would his human soul follow me, finally at rest and filled with a sense of peace, with eyes that I imagined to be a beautiful shade of the purest blue? Either way, I knew we would be together…

Finally, after about another fifteen minutes while the sun was beginning to set, we reached the town that Billy had told us about. It was so small that everything appeared to be within easy walking distance of everything else, and I saw that there were only a few houses in the area as we slowly drove down the gravel street. I didn't know what the name of this town was, and I highly doubted that even the people who lived here knew its name. Oh, yeah. We were _so_ going to be safe here…

After another couple of minutes, Carlisle pulled into the nearly empty parking lot of what appeared to be a small motel. He turned the car off before he looked at Emmett and I. "Are you ready?" When we nodded, a small smile appeared on his handsome face. "Al right then. Let's go."

I sighed as I grabbed my backpack and put it over my shoulder before climbing out of the car and walking beside Emmett as we followed Carlisle into the motel's main office. It was small and dimly lit, containing only a small, wooden desk across from us and nothing else. A young woman with shoulder-length, dark red hair stood behind it, filing her nails without interest as she quietly hummed along with her iPod. When she heard us approach the desk, she quickly glanced up, and her eyes shone the moment she saw Carlisle.

"Oh, hi!" she said with a broad smile and a slight, nervous laugh, hurriedly pulling out her earphones and setting down her nail file. "May I help you?"

Carlisle gave her a polite smile in response to her sudden enthusiasm. "Yes, my children and I would like to have a room for the night," he told her.

The woman's face fell instantly, but she looked somewhat confused as her eyes ran over Emmett and I. I knew that Carlisle looked way too young to have any children at all, much less two of our age. "Oh. These are _your_ children?" she asked.

"They're adopted," Carlisle answered with amusement. "We're on our way to see my _wife_, but we still have a long way ahead of us, and we need a place to stay." I smirked slightly when I noticed how he had stressed the word "wife."

"Right. I'm sorry, did you want one or two rooms again?" Wow, this woman sure was flustered…

Carlisle turned to look at me, and I shrugged in answer. It didn't really matter to me since I didn't have very long left here anyway. At the moment, all I wanted was Jasper.

"One room would be fine," Carlisle told the woman as he turned back to her. "It'll just be for one night before we're on the road again."

The woman seemed slightly disappointed by our short stay as she rang up our total. "All right. One room for one night… That will be sixty-three dollars and twenty-three cents." Small town, high prices, I guess. The poor woman had to feed herself somehow…

I watched curiously as Carlisle pulled his wallet out of his pocket and took out none other than a credit card. What would a vampire need a credit card for anyway? That thought made me smile…

"That takes care of it. You're in room twelve," the woman said, handing Carlisle back his credit card after she rang it up along with a room key. "Have a good stay."

"Thank you." Carlisle nodded respectfully to her before he turned to Emmett and I. "Come on, kids, let's go." He put one arm around my shoulders and the other around my brother's before leading us toward the door. I glanced behind me at the woman standing behind the counter, seeing that she was looking at Carlisle with a dazed expression on her face as we left and entered the mild, evening air.

Room twelve ended up being behind the office and was facing a small, backyard-like clearing with dense trees on the other side of it. Carlisle pulled the key out of his pocket and unlocked the door before pushing it open. Emmett entered the dark room first, and I followed after him with Carlisle behind me. I blinked when the room suddenly flooded with light since Emmett had turned on a lamp on a small, creaky, wooden desk near the bed, and I sighed when I saw where we would be staying for the night.

There was a single bed against the far wall with ugly blue and pink sheets with one white pillow, and a television sat under the window beside the door. There was another door near the foot of the bed that led into a small bathroom, containing only a toilet and a sink. Thankfully, this was only going to be for one night…

"Well, Alice gets the bed by default since she's the only one who actually sleeps," Carlisle said with a smile while he shut and locked the door behind him.

"Yeah, lucky her," Emmett muttered with an eyeroll, feigning jealousy. Then, he smiled broadly as he ruffled my hair.

I smiled and laughed a little as I pushed his now cold hand away. Then, I sighed and walked slowly over to the bed, dropping my backpack at the end of it before lying down on my back, merely staring up at the cracked ceiling. I saw Emmett sit down on the floor in front of the television out of the corner of my eye, and I turned my head and watched as Carlisle stood by the desk with the lamp on it, emptying his silver cell phone and set of keys on it before sitting down in the wooden chair in front of it. He sighed, running his hand through his blond hair. It was an action that made me nervous. I had never seen Carlisle so visibly worried before…

"So, what's the news on James?" I asked him quietly.

Carlisle slowly turned to meet my gaze. "Esme has told me that the tracker has left the camp and is heading west, and she and Rosalie believe the female is still around the camp somewhere. Nothing has changed there since one of them would have called if it had. Then, Jasper told me that he, Bella, and Edward have to keep moving since the tracker is right on their tail."

My eyes widened with fear at this statement. James was following Jasper?! That wasn't what I had expected-or wanted- to hear! But before I could say anything, Carlisle and I both jumped when we heard a loud crash, and we turned to look at Emmett across the room from us. If possible, my eyes got even wider when I saw he was now standing in front of a demolished T.V. set…

"What?" Emmett asked, looking at us as though he was a deer trapped in headlights. "The T.V. wasn't working. It had really bad reception. It's not my fault…"

"Emmett…" Carlisle groaned with a sigh, placing his thumb and index finger on the bridge of his nose as he closed his eyes. "Can you at least _try_ to act human like we're supposed to instead of destroying the things that make you angry?"

"It's not like many people come here, Carlisle. I bet they won't even notice this for like another month or two," Emmett replied casually with a grin. "Besides, if we did have to pay for it, we could just charge all repairs to your credit card!"

"You broke it, you pay for it, Emmett."

I laughed a little at their bantering as I turned onto my side to face the wall, sighing as I closed my eyes and tuned them out. But before I could get comfortable, I quickly sat up and unzipped my backpack, pulling out my cell phone and placing it beside the pillow so it was within easy reaching distance and my stuffed bat, holding it close to me as I lay back down. I sighed again, knowing that the stress of the situation wouldn't lift no matter how much I willed it to. Only Jasper could do that with that special ability of his, and just being near him seemed to make me forget all of my problems.

But he wasn't here… Tears formed in my eyes when I saw his perfect face in my mind's eye, and I knew that would be the last I ever saw of him… the last conversation we had being the last he would ever say to me. I would never see him again…

Suddenly, I gasped as my eyes snapped open when my cell phone began to ring. I reached over and grabbed it, flipping it open before bringing it to my ear. "Hello?" I asked, my voice heavy.

"_Alice?_"

I gasped again as my face lit up, and I sat straight up on the bed when I heard the familiar, comforting voice on the other end. "_Jasper_! Where are you? Are you all right?"

I heard his soft laughter on the other end, a sound that made me feel much better. "_Slow down, Alice,_" Jasper told me. "_I'm the one who's supposed to be checking up on you, remember?_"

"Well, there's not much to say. We're in a run-down motel owned by a woman who has a major crush on Carlisle in a room with a broken T.V. since Emmett smashed the life out of the poor thing not too long ago," I replied with a slight smile. Just hearing his voice again was very comforting. "So, even if I _had_ wanted to watch something on television, I can't now."

"_That certainly sounds… interesting,_" Jasper commented.

I laughed a little. "Yes, it's certainly interesting," I agreed. "But what's going on with you? Are _you _all right? I mean, I know James is following you…"

"_Yes, I'm fine, Bella. Alice is sleeping now, but we're still driving since I think it would be best to keep moving with the tracker so close behind us,_" Jasper said.

What was Jasper talking about? I wasn't sleeping, so why was he telling Bella that I was? Then, I realized that he was calling _me_ Bella and was referring to Bella as me. James must have been within hearing range of him.

"He can hear you, can't he?" I asked quietly, knowing that he would know who I was talking about.

"_Yes, but not you._"

That was a good thing. Knowing my luck, I would probably say something that would give the whole operation away. "So, I take it the plan's still going well then?"

"_So far so good,_" Jasper told me. "_We're taking Alice as far away from the campsite as possible._"

It hurt me to hear him say my name but not actually be talking about me, but it also made me realize how dire the situation I was in truly was as tears formed in my eyes. Was this going to be the last time I would ever hear Jasper's voice? I hoped not…

"_It's all right,_" Jasper suddenly muttered comfortingly as if he could sense my tears, even through the phone and we were so far apart. "_Hopefully, this will be over soon and we can get Alice back to the camp safely again._"

That's when a tear slowly fell from my eyes, but I brushed it away quickly so that hopefully Carlisle and Emmett wouldn't notice it. "Hopefully," I whispered. "I love you, Jazz, so, so much."

There was a moment of silence before Jasper said anything. "_I love you too._" His voice was quieter now, probably so James couldn't hear him. "_I promise you that I will end this soon. I love you._" Then, he hung up.

I sniffed as I flipped my phone closed and set it beside my pillow, holding my stuffed bat close to my chest. The way Jasper had said "I love you" twice made me feel very nervous… as though I wouldn't be seeing him again…

"What did Jasper say, Alice?" Carlisle asked me gently. He must have known how painful that conversation had been for me.

"He said that James was still following them, so we're safe here," I answered. "_At least… for now…_" I added silently to myself.

The rest of the evening was spent uneventfully. I lay on the bed with my back turned to the rest of the room, staring blankly at the wall in front of me. Behind me, I heard Emmett pacing restlessly and Carlisle speaking in low, anxious tones to who I assumed was Esme. But I remained silent, my eyes only holding the wall in front of me as a few tears fell from my eyes, unnoticed by my brother and father figure.

"The female has left the campsite and is heading north. Esme and Rosalie, along with Jacob and Sam, are going after her," Carlisle suddenly announced as he closed his cell phone, his quiet voice making me jump a little. "Hopefully, they can keep her away from the humans."

"So, what are we going to do then?" Emmett asked impatiently. I could hear his worry for Rosalie. "Do we still just sit here?"

"Yes, Emmett," Carlisle answered, almost hesitantly since I knew that he was worried about Esme too. "We have to keep Alice safe."

They had to keep me safe. I didn't quite know the point anymore since even with all of their efforts, I knew that James was still going to get to me. His determination was just too strong…

Unfortunately, these were the last thoughts on my mind as my eyes slowly began to close. At first, I foolishly thought that Jasper was somewhere nearby since I suddenly felt much calmer. But I then realized that it was my own exhaustion, my own acceptance, that was making me drowsy, and I gave up fighting and allowed the darkness to take me.

* * *

_I heard a girl's scream, one that sounded familiar, echo around me. I looked around me at the dark forest with confusion, wondering how I had gotten there when I had just fallen asleep in the motel room. I heard the scream again, and since I appeared to be the only one around, I ran forward along the path that gently sloped uphill to try to find and help her. My heart began to quicken with every step that I took as a feeling of anxiousness began to blossom inside of me._

_When I reached the top of the hill that overlooked a dark lake, I stopped with shock as I watched James approach a girl lying in the grass. She wasn't very tall, and she had short, spiked, black hair in a pixie-like style. He reached down and picked her up forcefully, looking at her with a sense of triumph gleaming in his red eyes, and I gasped with fear when I suddenly recognized the girl in his hands._

_It was me._

_Then, the image was blurred and replaced with another one of a panicked Jasper kneeling on the grass on top of the hill, shaking someone's limp form. He appeared to be crying, but no tears were falling from his eyes. His perfect lips were moving quickly repeatedly forming someone's name, but I couldn't hear him. But then, my vision moved down to who was in his arms, and I gasped as my eyes widened with fear._

_It was me. My eyes were closed and I didn't respond to Jasper as he shook me and called my name, my dark hair moving into my deathly pale face as my head lolled limply against his arm._

_This was all the confirmation that I needed…_

_James was going to win._

* * *

My eyes snapped open as I gasped, quickly turning onto my back to look at the motel room around me. I sighed with relief when I saw that James was nowhere in sight, but I felt a wave of fear rush through me when I saw that Carlisle and Emmett weren't there either…

I slowly sat up, wondering where they could have gone. It's not like there was anything to do in this town. And why would they leave me alone when James was still out there somewhere?

Then, I noticed that a long, small box with a salad with ham, cheese, tomatoes, carrots, and ranch dressing was sitting on the desk near the lamp. I reached forward, not realizing how hungry I was until now, and I opened the box and poured the dressing over the salad before opening the plastic fork and beginning to eat. After taking a few bites, I saw that there was a piece of paper sitting on the desk beneath Carlisle's set of keys that hadn't been there before. I curiously set down the box with the half-eaten salad in it back down on the desk before I reached over and picked it up, looking over the neat handwriting quickly. It read:

_Alice,_

_Emmett and I have gone hunting in the woods behind the motel away from any people, but we are still close enough in case the tracker comes anywhere near the area. We're sorry that we didn't tell you we were leaving, but you needed the rest, and we were in desperate need of hunting, especially after Emmett destroyed the television… We will be back soon. I have my cell phone if you need to contact me. Enjoy the salad!_

Carlisle

I sighed and placed the letter back down on the desk, running my hand through my short, dark hair without bothering to pick up the salad again since my appetite had suddenly left me and was replaced with a feeling of dread. I was alone. Though Carlisle had told me that they weren't too far away, I still felt completely and utterly alone.

Suddenly, my vision blurred, and instead of the small, wooden desk I had been staring at, I saw James watching as a golden car passed the road in front of him. Jasper was behind the wheel of this car, and I watched as he looked over at James as he passed him before turning the corner and out of sight. Then, James growled angrily and lunged after the car…

He knew. At that moment, I knew that James realized that he had been chasing the wrong people, that I wasn't with Jasper. He was angry now, and I knew that would only fuel his determination to come for me in any way that he could…

Then, I jumped and shrieked when my cell phone rang from the bed behind me. My heart beginning to return to its normal rate, I slowly turned around and picked up the small phone. Without even looking at the number, I immediately flipped it open and brought it to my ear. "Jasper?" Who else would be calling me?

But I heard a soft laugh on the other end, and I sighed and closed my eyes. I guess I shouldn't have been too surprised that it wasn't Jasper's voice that I heard.

Instead, it was the cruel laugh of James.

**A/N**: Alrighty, there's another cliffie, lol. Sorry, I couldn't help it. There will be a couple of cliffies for a little bit yet, so get used to them! I will try to update as soon as I can! Thanks for reading! Your reviews are much appreciated! And I actually remembered the preview this time! I'm not as tired, I guess. So, enjoy!

**Next Chapter**: _Dance With Death_

_My heart nearly stopped cold when I heard his statement. "Wh… what have you done with Jasper?"_

Xxx

_I fumbled for the right key in the darkness, and finally finding it, I started the car._

_"Carlisle's going to kill me," I muttered to myself, adjusting the rear-view mirror before backing out of the parking lot and driving onto the road as I headed in the direction of the camp._

Xxx

_It was where Jasper and I had shared our first kiss… where I had learned about his scars… where I had first slapped a werewolf… It was Jasper and my special place, and now, it would be the place where I would meet my death._

Xxx

_"So… my life is just a game to you now?" James truly was sadistic…_

_James only smiled at me as he lifted me off the ground by my arms again, pulling me up close so that our faces were only inches apart. "Oh, no, Alice," he muttered with a laugh, his crimson eyes shining. "You're _much_ more to me than that."_

Xxx

_"He won't come."_

_Then, another cry ripped from my throat as the pain suddenly intensified after a moment, and I rolled onto my back as I desperately screamed, "_Jasper, help me!_"_


	27. Chapter 26: Dance With Death

**Disclaimer**: If these characters belonged to me, my name would be Stephenie. Which it's not.

**A/N**: Hey, welcome back! Remember how I said last time that the weather was just perfect? Well, it's not so much anymore. It's cold and rainy… which sucks. But, that's okay. I'm back with another update! Oh, and since I've been asked, the sequel to this story is coming along great! It's called "Ice Moon," and I'm on chapter eleven. So, that's good, and hopefully, I can get that started soon after this one. And the song "When You're Gone" does not belong to me, but to Avril Lavigne. Um, no flames like usual, and we're about to see how evil James really is in this one. Since I couldn't use Alice's mother (or grandmother) like he did for Bella in the actual book, he has to come up with a few other people…

_Chapter 26- Dance with Death_

"_I'm sorry to disappoint you, Alice,_" James said with another laugh, his tone one of triumph. "_But I'm afraid that your boyfriend isn't in the position to talk at the moment._"

My heart nearly stopped cold when I heard his statement. "Wha… what have you done with Jasper?" I asked as panicked tears formed in my eyes, hoping that my voice wasn't sounding too choked up.

James laughed at my question, which made me nervous. "_Nothing yet, dear,_" he answered lightly… _too_ lightly. "_But you know, his ability of feeling other people's emotions can really be a… a disadvantage for him._"

"What-!" I began, but before I could finish, I heard a familiar cry in the background, one that I recognized. It was Jasper. I could see him writhing on the ground in agony in my mind, his eyes shut tightly as another scream escaped from him. Oh, God. Had he really changed his mind that quickly? How could I not have seen this?

"Stop it!" I screamed desperately into the phone as my tears began to fall. "Stop! Stop it, or I'll-!"

"_You'll what?_" James sneered, and I was devastated to hear that Jasper's cries of pain didn't end. "_What can a pathetic, frail human such as yourself hope to ever do against me?_"

A quiet sob escaped from me when I realized that James was right. What could _I_ possibly do against a vampire? But I _had_ to do something… "Please, just stop," I begged in nearly a whisper. "I'll do anything you want. Please, just stop hurting him… Please…"

After a moment, Jasper's cries did stop, and I sighed with relief. "_I did what you asked me to do, but now you have to hold up your end of the deal, my little Alice,_" James said. "_I need you to come back to the camp… alone. If you don't, your boyfriend will not be the only one who dies._"

Dread rushed through me at his statement. "What do you mean?" I asked nervously.

But instead of answering my question, James just laughed. "_Listen for yourself, my dear._"

I strained my ear to listen for whatever he was telling me to hear. At first, there was nothing. But then, my eyes widened with fear when I heard a few people shouting my name. I picked them out to be Jessica, Angela, Mike, and Eric.

"You monster…" I whispered.

"_Humans are such frail creatures,_" James told me quietly as my friends' screams slowly died away. "_So… breakable…_"

"Don't hurt them," I said quickly, ignoring the tears that were flowing freely from my eyes now. "Where… where do you want me to meet you at the camp?"

"_At the place that you and Jasper love so much,_" James replied. "_Can you get there?_"

I nodded with determination, knowing that he couldn't see me. "I… I'll find a way. Just promise me that you won't hurt them."

James laughed a little. "_I won't if you really do show up,_" he promised me. "_So, I'm assuming that I will see you soon, my dear."_

"Yes," I agreed solemnly, knowing that I had just sealed my fate. "I'll see you soon."

"_You had better come soon and just make sure that you're alone. Just remember that their lives rest in your hands now._" James was threatening me. "_Goodbye._" Then, he hung up.

I shakily closed my phone and placed it on the bed beside me before putting my face into my hands, a defeated sob escaping from me. I had no idea how I was going to get back to the camp. Walking would take too long… hitchhiking was too unsafe… but I knew I had to do _something_ to get there. I couldn't let anyone die…

Why was I so worried? Jasper could probably get himself out of this situation. But then, I realized that James was probably a step ahead of me and had already thought this through. He had probably threatened to kill his other captives if Jasper tried to escape, and he didn't want an innocent life to be taken. Maybe… he was waiting for me to arrive, and once James was distracted, he could attack and maybe even kill him before he could kill me. That sounded like something that he would do. I could only hope that this was the case and something hadn't happened to him that would prevent him from being able to escape…

Either way, I had to get there. I had to save him, no matter what the cost…

With a sigh, I slowly lowered my hands, and my eyes landed on Carlisle's set of keys. Maybe… No, I just couldn't take his car. He would be furious. But, it was my only chance to save the one I loved most. I'm sure he would understand…

I stood up off the bed and quickly walked over to the desk, flipping my phone open and dialing the number that Carlisle had written on the bottom of the note he had left for me. It rang once as I put my stuffed bat in my backpack and zipped it up, and then he answered.

"_What's going on, Alice?_" Carlisle asked.

What was I supposed to say to him? That I was going to go confront James to save his son? More tears formed in my eyes, but I swallowed them back as I simply whispered, "I'm sorry."

"_Alice, what do you mean?_" I could hear that he was nervous. "_Ali-!"_

I closed the phone and cut him off, fighting back the flow of tears that threatened to fall as I put it in my pocket. That's all I could bring myself to say to him. But, I knew that I had to get out of there fast before Carlisle and Emmett could come back and stop me. I grabbed my backpack and threw it over my shoulder before grabbing Carlisle's keys. Then, I did one final sweep of the room to make sure I hadn't forgotten anything before I ran out the door and into the cool night.

The parking lot was empty when I reached it, and I ran over to the driver's door of Carlisle's black Mercedes and unlocked it. I climbed in behind the wheel, throwing my backpack into the seat beside me before moving my seat forward so I could easily reach the pedal and putting my seatbelt on. I fumbled for the right key in the darkness, and finally finding it, I started the car.

"Carlisle's going to kill me," I muttered to myself, adjusting the rearview mirror before backing out of the parking lot and driving onto the road as I headed in the direction of the camp.

As I drove along the dark, empty road, I felt tears beginning to prick my eyes again. Many thoughts were running through my head, none of them pleasant. What if James went back on his word and killed one of his captives before I could get there? What if a policeman pulled me over? I only had my temporary driver's license and shouldn't have been driving without my guardian in the car with me, but I highly doubted the excuse of 'my boyfriend and some of my other friends are going to be killed by a sadistic vampire' would get me out of trouble. In fact, that would probably land me in my own personal padded room…

The silence in the car was unnerving, so I reached forward and turned on the radio. The clock showed for a brief second first, and I saw that it was almost midnight. Then, the radio station came in, which was in the middle of a slow song. Unfortunately, it was one that I knew… and one that made my tears slowly fall.

_"When you're gone_

_The pieces of my heart are missing you_

_When you're gone_

_The face I came to know is missing too_

_And when you're gone_

_The words I need to hear_

_To always make it through the day_

_And make it okay_

_I miss you…"_

My tears flowing freely now, I turned down the radio so that I couldn't hear that words as clearly. My hands tightened around the wheel so that I could focus instead on what now lay ahead of me, blinking furiously so that I could clearly see the road I was driving on. I had to… I had to keep my focus for Mike… Jessica… Angela… Eric… _Jasper_. I had to make it there for them.

The road was so dark that I almost missed the run-down sign that marked the entrance of Camp Lupine, but I was able to slow down enough so that I could turn onto the gravel path. This was a nice car… I drove between the dark trees with rising anxiety, trying to take deep, even breaths to calm my racing heart. I soon passed the mess hall building and entered the parking lot, driving across it and coming to a stop beside the secret path that Jasper had showed me so early in the camp. I sighed as I turned the car off, leaning my head back against the seat as I closed my eyes. This was it. My end began now…

Remembering what I had to do, I quickly opened my eyes again as I pulled the keys out of the ignition and left them on the dashboard for Carlisle to find before taking my cell phone out of my pocket and putting it in my backpack, leaving it on the seat. Then, taking a deep breath, I unbuckled my seatbelt and climbed out of the car, shutting the door behind me before I started to walk on the dark path that would lead me to a place that I loved and would always hold a special place in my heart. It was where Jasper and I had shared our first kiss… where I had learned about his scars… where I had first slapped a werewolf… It was Jasper and my special place, and now, it would be the place where I would meet my death.

It would be worth it if I could spare the life of the one I loved most in this world.

As I continued my journey up the hill, I suddenly stopped when I heard quiet but panicked mutterings that I recognized to be from my friends only a short distance ahead of me. "Hold on, guys," I whispered, beginning to run the rest of the way up the hill. I had to get there to show James that I had kept my end of the deal so that he would let them all go without hurting them…

I soon broke past the trees at the top of the hill as I slowed my pace to a stop, and my heart sank as dread coursed through me when I saw what was waiting for me in the light from the full moon. No one was in sight. Instead, on top of the hill, sat a large stereo.

Moving slowly and cautiously toward it, I approached the stereo, kneeling down in front of it. I slowly reached a shaking hand forward and hesitantly pushed the stop button. Instantly, the voices of Jessica, Mike, Angela, and Eric stopped.

"How did you like my debut composition? Pretty realistic if I do say so myself, wouldn't you agree? If you had let it play until track two, you would have heard Jasper scream again. That's my favorite track."

I quickly turned to look behind me, and I watched as James himself walked out of the dark trees that I had passed and slowly began to come toward me with a cruel smirk on his face. So, I was finally about to meet my fate… truly alone…

"They're not here," I muttered when the realization that it had all just been a lure… and I had fallen for it. How had he gotten past my visions? "Jessica… Mike… Angela… Eric… Jasper…" I said the last name with a hint of longing. "They're all safe…"

"My, you really are clever," James laughed as he stopped in front of me. "Too bad you figured it out just a little too late. It was a nice trick you tried to pull, though. Why would Jasper ever leave you? Imagine my surprise when I found out that it was his sister who was really with him and not you. So, I came back here, knowing that I could easily lure you to me with Jasper. And it was. Now, I have you." Then, he picked me up roughly by the arm, holding on to it tightly as he leaned close to my neck and inhaled deeply.

"What do you want?" I demanded when I felt his cold breath against my skin, trying to pull free from his iron grasp. For the first time since I had learned that James was after me, I was starting to feel afraid.

James laughed a little as he moved away from me, still keeping his hand tight around my upper arm. "There's nothing that I really want now since you walked so willingly right into my hands," he told me. "Now, you're finally mine."

I angrily lashed my foot out and kicked his leg at his statement, but it accomplished nothing except a throbbing toe and a cry of pain from me. "I… I don't belong to you," I hissed once I could actually talk again. "The only person I belong to is Jasper…"

But James smirked and laughed at my protest. "Not for long."

Suddenly, he released my arm as he threw me down toward the hill beneath us. I screamed when I hit the ground hard and rolled down a little, finally coming to a stop on my back. I closed my eyes tightly in pain as my shoulder throbbed angrily where I had landed on it, my breath coming in gasps. I was completely surprised that it hadn't been shattered from the force of the fall…

"Your love for Jasper is what makes you weak," James continued from where he was suddenly at my side. "That's why you're in this situation now, completely at my mercy. If you wouldn't have been so intent on trying to save him, then you might have figured out my little trap."

Of course he was right, but I wasn't going to admit that to him as I turned my head and glared up at him. "Why are you after me if I'm so weak then?" I asked angrily.

"Because your blood is like a magnet to us _true_ vampires," James answered me, the cruel smile vanishing from his face. "It's probably the same thing that drew Jasper to you, though I'm not sure why it gives him and his family better control around you. But, the smell of it begins to boil our bloodlust and really brings out the animal in us. It's addicting.

"Laurent, Victoria, and I were passing through Forks when you first moved here with your brothers. I almost went for you right then and there, but I didn't since it wouldn't be much fun. I decided to make it a challenge since the reward would be much sweeter once we reached the end. So, I waited and kept my eye on you, and especially now that you're in the favor of the Cullens, this will make this little game a lot more fun and interesting."

"So, my life is just a game to you now?" James truly was sadistic…

James only smirked at me as he lifted me off the ground by my arms again, pulling me up close so that our faces were only inches apart. "Oh, no, Alice," he muttered with a laugh, his crimson eyes shining with excitement. "You're _much_ more to me than that." Then, he flung me back up toward the top of the hill.

I landed right in front of the stereo, and I gasped with shock as the wind was knocked out of me when the upper part of my back hit the hard edge of it. Tears formed in my eyes at the strong pain as I tried to sit up, and my hand accidentally hit the play button on the stereo. I gasped again when I heard Jasper's screams suddenly come from the speakers behind me. It was now on track two.

"Ah, my favorite," James commented, tightly grabbing my right hand- which had finally healed enough so I could take the bandages off- and jerking me to my feet. I staggered into him since I could hardly keep my balance anymore and needed the support to stand properly. He put his arm around my waist and roughly pulled me close to him. "I think this deserves a dance."

"Let go of me," I said as fiercely as I could while I tried to pull away, but it didn't have any effect. James only smiled as we spun in a complete circle once before he squeezed my right hand tightly. I screamed loudly in pain as I felt my once dislocated fingers completely shatter beneath his icy fingers, along with the rest of the bones in my hand. Tears burned in my eyes and fell as I looked down at the sight of what had once been the end of my arm. Blood was smeared all over my hand due to the puncture wounds in some places where my bones had gone through my skin, and it was already beginning to bruise and swell.

James held onto me tightly with one arm as he raised his hand that was covered in blood- _my _blood- to his lips and slowly licked it off as though he was savoring it. I felt nauseated by the sight, but then, my eyes widened in fear when he suddenly snarled fiercely and shoved me forcefully down the hill again. I slid through the grass before I hit my head forcefully on one of the trees, gasping when my vision threatened to darken. All I could see clearly in my mind's eye was Jasper's perfect, smiling face. I knew that would be the last I ever saw of him…

But as I lay there, my breathing heavy, I quickly assessed my injuries. The most obvious one was my completely crushed right hand, but I also had some smaller ones. My back was still throbbing and was probably bruised from where I had landed on the stereo, and my left elbow and my right knee were both scraped and slightly bleeding. And now, I could also feel some blood starting to come from the spot on my head where it had connected with the tree.

Why wouldn't James just kill me? He had already broken me. How much more could I possibly take?

Suddenly, a cry of pain escaped from me as a heavy foot came down on my right wrist, and spots danced before my eyes as my mind processed the pain of another part of my hand snapping. I hardly even noticed that the sound of Jasper's screams of pain on the stereo had stopped. "You humans are so easily breakable," James said, and I heard him kneel down beside me as more tears escaped from my eyes due to the pain. "It's been fun, Alice, but now, I think we should wrap this up. You seem tired. Besides, this is the part that I have been anticipating the most."

I thanked whatever deity was there that all of this was about to end. But I was slightly nervous when he mentioned that he was looking forward to this. What could he possibly do to me now?

James then put his arm around my neck and lifted my upper body up. He put his other arm around my waist again to steady me before he moved the collar of Bella's t-shirt down a little. Then, he slowly leaned forward and tenderly kissed the base of my neck before his teeth sunk into my skin.

My scream was louder than before as a burning pain began to move through me. So, this is what the transformation felt like… James gently set me back down on the ground with a smirk as I writhed in pain, my eyes closing tightly as my back arched. I had to make it all just stop… I could feel James watching me with amusement, but I ignored him as I curled into a sort of ball, my body tensing as the extreme pain continued to course through me. It was mind numbing…

"Jasper…" I whispered as tears flowed freely from behind my closed eyes.

James only laughed. "Call for him all you want. He won't be able to reach you in time to save you," he told me.

No… I refused to believe it. He would come for me if he knew how much pain I was in… wouldn't he? "Jasper…" I groaned, my voice slightly louder now. He had to hear me… he would come…

"It won't be enough," James continued to tell me, seeming to enjoy hearing me plead for the only person I wanted to see at the moment. It was amusing to him. "He won't come."

Then, another cry ripped from my throat as the pain suddenly intensified for a moment, and I rolled onto my back as I desperately screamed, "_Jasper, help me!_"

**A/N**: And… that's that one. I hope you liked it! Thanks for reading! Your reviews are much appreciated! Okay, we're going to switch this preview up a bit now. Obviously, I think you all know that the final fight part is coming up in the next chapter. However, I don't like how Meyer wrote it from Bella's perspective in the actual book. In mine, the fight is going to be from _Jasper's _POV. It'll be a bit more exciting for you guys that way. Plus, at the beginning of not the next chapter but the following one, there will be like a paragraph or two from Alice's POV about the pain she's feeling during the fight. Basically, that would be all the fight would be if I did it that way. So, enjoy the preview, and remember that it's from _Jasper's _POV.

**Next Chapter**: _Fight Against Time _(all Jasper)

_James had bitten her, and I could feel the agony of the transformation along with her. No… I had to get to her to stop it…_

Xxx

_"Alice," I muttered with worry, my breathing hard as I tried to keep from voicing my pain so she wouldn't worry about me. I winced when I saw all of the blood coming from her right hand, her right knee, her left arm, and a little spot on her head, the metallic smell of it assaulting me._

_After a moment, Alice opened her tear-filled eyes and looked up at me with fear. "Jasper, help me!" she screamed, shuddering as severe pain moved through both of us. "Make the burning stop!"_

Xxx

_"No, Alice! Stay down!" I said fiercely, throwing my arm out to try to stop her from coming too close. I cringed in pain when she did also. "Stay back!"_

Xxx

_"Alice will be mine," he muttered. Then, smiling triumphantly, James began to lean toward my neck._

Xxx

_Emmett's arm tightened around me when I couldn't completely suppress a cry of pain. "Hold on, Jazz," he muttered before he looked back down the hill._

_"Carlisle!" he shouted anxiously._

Xxx

_"Al…_ Alice_…" I gasped._

_"I know," Carlisle told me. "But there's nothing we can do now. We're too late."_

Xxx

_"Carlisle, I've never done this before," Bella muttered with worry. "What if I can't stop?"_

_"You can stop, Bella," I told her quietly, hopefully in a tone that would encourage her. "You will if you remember that it is to save Alice."_


	28. Chapter 27: Fight Against Time

**Disclaimer**: Nope, not mine! This chapter will definitely be different. Amazing what a change in POV can do, huh?

**A/N**: Hey, guys! Guess what? This is my top-rated story now! Thank you all so much! Since that's the case, not only will a do a sneak preview at the end for the sequel, but I'll also do something else that I think you guys might like at the end, so keep an eye out for that. Um, sorry it's taken me a longer time than usual to update (especially after that evil cliffhanger), but I've been so busy since it's our last week before our AP Government final test, so it's been hectic. Plus, we've had to write a lot of essays at home to prepare for the AP English one too, so that's been a bummer. But, tonight is relatively free, so here's another update! And I'm switching POVs for this one in an attempt to make it more exciting for you guys. I hope it works out. Enjoy!

_Chapter 27- Fight Against Time_

_Jasper POV_

_"Jasper, help me!"_

I heard her pained scream much nearer to me now, which drove me forward at a faster pace up the hill that Alice and I both treasured. Why would she leave like this? Why would she walk right into the tracker's waiting hands? It hadn't made sense when Carlisle told me that she had gone. But now, I had to help her, whatever the reason for her decision had been. If he hurt her too badly in any way…

I reached the top of the hill then, forcing James away from Alice- _my_ Alice- with so much force that we both went flying into the trees behind him across the path from her. I immediately pushed myself away from him and the mangled wood of the broken trees around us as I made my way back to where Alice was lying against the tree on the other side of the path. But before I could get to close to her, I staggered and fell to my knees as a burning began to course through me. I raised my head and watched anxiously as Alice continued to scream and writhe on the ground before me, and I instantly knew why I was in so much pain.

James had bitten her, and I could feel the agony of the transformation along with her. No… I had to get to her to stop it… She couldn't be one of us… If she were to ever be turned, it had to be by me, not some sadistic vampire…

I resisted the urge to cry out with the pain I felt that was not my own as I started to crawl over to Alice. Tears were streaming from her eyes, and I could hear her whimpering my name whenever she wasn't screaming, which motivated me to move faster. I had to reach her in time…

Suddenly, an angry growl came from the woods behind me. Before I could react, a hand wrapped tightly around my ankle and pulled me back, slamming me forcefully into the nearest tree and breaking it cleanly in half. I knew that if I had been human, the action would have easily snapped my spine completely. Fortunately, that was not the case, but I still lay on my side as I bit down on my bottom lip to keep myself from crying out at the pain that I was experiencing through Alice. It was getting more severe, but I refused to show the tracker how much pain I was truly in…

"You can feel it, can't you? I guess I shouldn't be surprised."

I slowly opened my eyes and watched as James approached me, a cruel smile on his face. "I knew that you had the ability to feel the emotions of others, but I did not think that physical pain was one of them," he continued with a small laugh as he began to circle me. "Right now, you can feel the venom that's spreading through her, can't you? The pain… the agony…"

Then, my eyes widened with surprise at the amount of pain that suddenly attacked my body, and I couldn't help but scream as the agonized sound came from Alice from the path. James only laughed as he watched me curl in on myself in an attempt to stop the pain. Not for me, but for Alice.

"Should I bite her again and see how much it hurts then, Jasper?"

The question struck a nerve within me, and growling angrily, I suddenly leapt up from the ground and collided with James, knocking him off his feet and sending him flying deeper into the woods. Despite the extreme pain I was now experiencing, I ran out of the trees to the path and dropped down beside Alice's writhing form.

"Alice…" I muttered with worry, my breathing hard as I tried to keep from voicing my pain so she wouldn't worry about me. I winced when I saw all of the blood coming from her right hand, her right knee, her left arm, and a little spot on her head, the metallic smell of it assaulting me…

After a moment, Alice opened her tear-filled eyes and looked up at me with fear. "Jasper, help me!" she screamed, shuddering as severe pain moved through both of us. "Make the burning stop!"

I grabbed her left hand since it was the one that wasn't broken and squeezed it gently, hoping to comfort her and distract myself from what felt like fire moving through my still veins. "I will, Alice," I told her quietly as I searched anxiously for the bite mark. "I'll make it stop. You'll be fine, my love." I could see in her dark eyes that she desperately wanted to believe me…

"Oh, no you won't!"

I quickly looked behind me, but I was too late to stop James from wrapping his arm tightly around my neck and pulling me off the ground, slamming and trapping me against the tree she was lying against. "I can see that you are in great pain because of the venom spreading through Alice, no matter how much you try to hide it," he whispered to me while I tried to struggle out of his iron grasp. "Let's make it even, shall we?"

Before I could ask what he meant, James quickly leaned forward, and his teeth sunk into my skin at the base of my neck… right on the same spot where Maria had bitten me decades before when I was still human. I hoarsely cried out in pain as his venom entered my system, and I heard him laugh with cruel satisfaction as he threw me out to the top of the hill. I landed hard on the stereo that had been there, crushing it completely beneath me as I closed my eyes tightly when the burning from the bite began to mingle with the pain I was feeling from Alice. I felt my back arch as I turned over onto my side when another cry escaped from me.

"Jasper!"

I slowly opened my eyes and frantically looked up, seeing that Alice had somehow pushed herself to her knees away from the tree despite the venom flowing through her, and she was now trying to crawl the rest of the way up the hill to me. "No, Alice! Stay down!" I said fiercely, throwing my arm out to try to stop her from coming too close. I cringed in pain when she did also. "Stay back!" I had to protect her, no matter what the cost…

Suddenly, James' foot came down forcefully on my arm where the joint of my elbow was, and I fought back another cry while Alice gasped in horror. My unneeded breath was coming in labored gasps now, which were similar to hers, as James grabbed the front of my shirt and pulled me off the ground.

"I wonder if I killed her if you would die as well," he muttered thoughtfully, his crimson eyes shining cruelly. "Shall we try it, Jasper?"

When I heard the threat he made against Alice, it gave me the strength to fight through the intense pain I was feeling, and I reached forward and wrapped both of my hands tightly around James' neck, biting his arm as he reached forward to pull me off. "Lay another hand on her, and I swear I will tear your head off with my bare hands," I muttered, hoping that my tone was dangerous enough as James hissed with pain.

But he recovered fast, and James laughed at my statement as he brushed the pain from the bite off. "Not when you're in this condition, you can't," he said before slamming me to the ground.

Suddenly, I heard Alice scream, and I cried out as well as a wave of severe pain wracked my whole body before subsiding slightly. I anxiously looked up, watching with fear as Alice wavered, her eyes closing as she collapsed to the ground. "Alice!" I shouted, reaching for her though I knew she was too far away from me. "Alice!"

But she didn't respond, and before I could bring myself down to her, James grabbed onto my shoulders and pulled me up again before throwing me to the other side of the path across from Alice. I landed at the base of a tree and hit my head against he trunk, and I closed my eyes as I gasped with shock. A moment later, I opened my eyes again as James knelt down beside me.

"It's been fun, Jasper," he muttered, putting two fingers under my chin and tilting my head back so that my throat was exposed. "But now, I think I'll have some mercy on you and put you out of your misery."

Right now, death didn't seem like such a terrible option. After all, James had already bitten me, and I was also feeling the effects of the venom spreading through Alice, so my body was being assaulted from two sources of pain. If it could only end…

But then, I thought of Alice. No… I had to survive for her… I had to save her… I started to push myself up from the ground, but James placed his knee heavily on my chest and held my arms down. At that moment, I could feel my instincts that I had gained from serving in two wars beginning to take over instead of the animal instincts I had been relying on before. I would wait for the right moment to strike back and catch him off guard when the time was right…

"Alice will be mine," he muttered. Then, smiling triumphantly, James began to lean towards my neck.

Any second now…

But he never made it. James' weight suddenly left me as he flew toward the top of the hill away from the trees, and I watched with confusion as another vampire landed in a protective crouch in front of me while James straightened up and got to his feet after the surprise attack. The vampire who had saved me turned to look back at me with concern, and I saw with shock that it was Edward. He gave me a small smile before he turned back in front of him and lunged at James to hold him back.

Then, I quickly looked above me when another vampire was suddenly at my side. "Are you all right, Jazz?" Emmett asked, also appearing concerned as he put his strong arm around my back and gently helped me to sit up.

I gratefully accepted his help, but before I could answer him, I tensed as another wave of severe, burning pain took over me. Once again, the venom running through me was mingling with the venom attacking Alice…

Emmett's arm tightened around me when I couldn't completely suppress a cry of pain. "Hold on, Jazz," he muttered before he looked back down the hill.

"Carlisle!" he shouted anxiously.

"Help Edward," I heard Carlisle mutter, at my side in an instant as he took me from Emmett. Even though I now had my eyes tightly shut, I could hear my newest brother join in the fight against James.

As soon as I felt the familiar, comforting arms around me, I rested my head on Carlisle's shoulder. I continued to tense and curl up, fighting back a scream because of the growing pain as it reached its peak, and I clung to my father tightly. "It's all right, Jasper," Carlisle whispered encouragingly, tightening his arms around me. "It will be over soon."

Over _soon_? I had to tell him that most of the pain attacking me wasn't my own, but I was experiencing it from another, more important source. He had to save her because I couldn't now. He had to stop the transformation. "Al… _Alice_…" I gasped.

"I know," Carlisle told me. "But there's nothing we can do now. We're too late."

_Too late_? No, I refused to believe that. I would not condemn the one I loved to this life. I attempted to struggle out of Carlisle's arms, but his hold around me was even stronger still, so I had no choice but to collapse weakly against him. I sighed with defeat, and I knew that if I could shed tears, I would have. I couldn't let this happen to Alice, at least, not in this way…

"No, Carlisle. We're not too late. We still have a little bit of time left. Let me try to get the venom out of her."

I slowly opened my eyes and looked up at Bella, who was anxiously standing in front of Carlisle and I. Carlisle quickly glanced at his watch before looking back up at her. "Be quick, Bella," he told her. "Time is short. Hurry now, or you will be too late to stop it."

Bella nodded and ran to the other side of the path, kneeling down beside Alice. She picked up her arm and quickly began to look for the spot where James had bitten her.

"The mark isn't on her arms," I muttered forcefully. "Check her neck."

My adoptive sister looked over at me when she heard my statement, and she immediately began to look on Alice's neck for a sign of a bite mark. She moved the collar of her shirt down a little to reveal the base of her neck, and she smiled triumphantly. "I found it!" she exclaimed.

"Hurry, Bella!" Carlisle shouted to her. "You're running out of time!"

But as I watched her intently, Bella's sudden doubt and anxiety began to hit me in continuous waves. She had been determined to stop the transformation within Alice, but now that she was placed in the position of actually going through with it, it terrified her.

"Carlisle, I've never done this before," Bella muttered with worry. "What if I can't stop?"

"You can stop, Bella," I told her quietly, hopefully in a tone that would encourage her. She had never tasted a human's blood before, unlike me. "You will if you remember that it is to save Alice."

These words seemed to click in Bella's mind, and she nodded with fresh determination as she nervously looked down at Alice, her closest friend. "All right. I'll do it," she said. Then, she slowly leaned down toward her, hesitating for a moment before cautiously beginning to suck out the venom.

I hissed at the slight but sharp pain that attacked the base of my neck as Alice jumped and tried to push Bella away from her. But I was able to fight through this pain and push myself out of Carlisle's arms, slowly getting to my feet and walking over to Bella, where I knelt down beside her. I reached forward and delicately took Alice's left hand in mine, holding it comfortingly as her struggling began to cease…

"All right, Bella, her blood is clean," Carlisle said as he approached us. "Bella…"

"Bella," I added gently, placing my other hand on my sister's back. "Bella, stop now. That's enough. Bella."

After another moment, Bella backed away from Alice and turned her head away from her as she held her breath, putting her hand to her head. I sighed with relief when I felt that most of my pain had subsided, which also meant that the same pain had left Alice…

"Be cautious of that bite mark for a while, Jasper," Carlisle told me sternly, eyeing my neck warily as he knelt down and put his arm around Bella. "It's all right, Bella. You did wonderfully. Alice will be fine."

I gave a reassuring smile to Bella before I looked down at Alice's pale face. I was calmed to see that her breathing was more regular now, and I could hear her heart beginning to slow to its normal rate. I raised my hand and placed it on her cheek, gently rubbing my thumb over the spot where her tears had previously been. If only I had gotten to her sooner… If only I had learned what she had planned to do a little earlier… Then, she wouldn't have had to suffer through such tremendous pain… I could have stopped it…

Then, I jumped a little when I felt a hand land on my shoulder, and I looked up into the smirking face of Edward. "We got a fire started, but we were wondering if you wanted to do the honors," he said, a hint of grim satisfaction in his voice. Carlisle must have told them how to kill a vampire…

Looking behind him, I saw that Emmett was holding tightly onto James, who was snarling viciously to try to escape from his hold though it was a fruitless effort, near a fire fueled by wood from some of the mangled trees and the remains of the stereo that I had crushed. My smirk mirrored Edward's as I pushed myself to my feet and walked with him to where Emmett was standing on top of the hill beneath the flood of moonlight. James stopped struggling when we approached and glared angrily at me.

"Well, it appears that Alice isn't your, now is she?" I said, a venom in my voice as I glared back at the vampire that had almost taken my Alice from me.

Surprisingly, James only laughed in response. "It's a shame that you didn't turn her or allow this transformation to occur," he told me. "Other vampires will be after her now…"

"Who? Your mate?" Edward demanded. "We can handle her."

"I wouldn't underestimate her," James cautioned us with a broad smile. "She won't rest until she has Alice, especially after what you are going to do here to me tonight. She will get her, I can promise you…"

I suddenly snarled loudly, reaching forward and grabbing James' head in my hands. I had heard enough… Making sure I had a firm hold, I twisted until I heard the tearing of flesh, and I watched with a grim satisfaction as James' head rolled through the grass toward the fire. "Finish with the remains," I told Edward and Emmett- I figured they should have some fun with him since this was the same man that had almost taken their sister. Then, I turned my back on them as I walked back down the hill toward where Alice was, anxious to get back to her. I could smell the strong stench of the burning form of James behind me, but I ignored it. All I knew was that no matter what he had said, no other vampire would endanger Alice…

Suddenly, I stopped when a weak, quiet voice reached my ears, a voice that made all of the tension from the situation leave me. "…Jasper…?"

I hurried down the rest of the hill to where Carlisle and Bella were, kneeling beside them. I looked down at Alice, who lie on the ground before me, and saw that her dark eyes, though slightly unfocused, were now open and wearily resting on me. "Hey," I muttered quietly, placing my hand gently on her cheek. I was grateful to see that Carlisle and Bella left us then to check up on Edward and Emmett.

Alice closed her eyes at my touch, but then she gasped as her eyes snapped back open and darted around in a panic, catching me off guard. "James…"

"Shh, it's all right," I told her soothingly, running my hand through her hair. "We took care of James. He won't hurt you again."

I saw and felt her calm down almost instantly, but then she cringed with pain. "My hand…" she moaned, grabbing my hand tightly with her other one.

"Carlisle will help take care of it," I said gently, my eyes nervously lingering on her bloodied right hand. "Just rest now, Alice. Everything will be fine."

Her dark eyes moved over to me again, and a thin line of tears appeared in them. "Please don't leave me again, Jazz," she whispered, a single tear falling from her eye. "Please, don't leave me…"

I smiled back down on her, lightly wiping her tear away. "I won't leave you, my love," I replied, gently kissing her forehead. "I promise. I'm here, and I always will be."

Relief flooded from Alice, and she tightened her hand a little around mine as she closed her eyes, feeling reassured at my words. "I love you, Jazz."

"I love you too, Alice," I told her quietly, delicately lifting her up into my arms and being careful not to move her crushed hand too much, holding her close when I felt her fall into a peaceful sleep. "I love you too."

**A/N**: Alrighty, there's that one! I hope you liked it being in Jasper's perspective. I thought it would be better than having it in Alice's. But anyway, thank you for reading! Your reviews are much appreciated! And of course, here's the preview, which is back to Alice's POV.

**Next Chapter**: _A Hiking Accident_

_I heard James' cruel laughter… Jasper's tortured screams of pain, and my heart broke when I realized that _I_ was the one causing him most of that pain and could do nothing to prevent it. That was the true pain that I was feeling… knowing that I couldn't stop Jasper's suffering…_

Xxx

_I only stared at Jasper, dumbfounded. "Let me get this straight," I muttered. "I've been out for three days in the hospital because of a _hiking accident_?"_

Xxx

_"What the hell do you think you were doing, Al?" Emmett demanded as he and Edward approached the bed that Jasper and I were sitting on._

Xxx

_"He saw past my visions, Jazz," I answered him with some fear in my voice. "I saw him go after the car when he realized that it was Bella with you and not me, but I couldn't see that he had set that trap for me. I couldn't see that he really didn't have you… I didn't see Emmett being mauled by that bear, either. What if my visions are leaving, Jazz? What if I can't see anymore?"_

Xxx

_"Jazz, I'm like you now," I whispered with sudden realization. "My scar is in the same spot where your first one is."_

Xxx

_"See what happens when I leave you?" he asked jokingly. "I'm gone for a moment and the wolves descend on you."_

Xxx

"_You know how that dance is coming up?" Why was I blushing? It's not like I only had a crush on Jasper and we hadn't been dating for the past couple of months or anything. He _was_ my boyfriend after all…_

"_Yes. What about it?"_

"_Would you go with me?"_


	29. Chapter 28: A Hiking Accident

**Disclaimer**: Nope, not mine!

**A/N**: Hey, thanks for the quick reviews, everyone! I appreciated them all! Since my AP exams are so close now, there really isn't much homework, so here I am to update again! I'm glad everyone liked that the final fight was in Jasper's perspective instead of Alice's. It was much more fun to write at least. Um, a couple of questions answered here. After this chapter, there is one more plus the epilogue… _plus_ the last thing I'm adding in because of all of your reviews! So, that means three more updates after this. Let's see… The sequel, "Ice Moon" will hopefully come out soon after that if I can start getting it up with previews and stuff. So, that is something that can be looked forward to. And yes, it is going to be like "New Moon" with Laurent and Victoria, except I'm kind of combining it with "Eclipse" since I'm not going to do all four books. There is a potential idea for a third floating in my head, but I wouldn't mark me yet. So, thanks for the reviews, and here's the next update, which is back to Alice's POV! Enjoy!

_Chapter 28- A Hiking Accident_

_Alice POV_

The pain was intense, burning fiercely as it spread inside of me. I heard James' cruel laughter… Jasper's tortured screams of pain, and my heart broke when I realized that _I_ was the one causing him most of that pain and could do nothing to prevent it. That was the true pain that I was feeling… knowing that I couldn't stop Jasper's suffering…

But then, all of that severe pain stopped, and I saw Jasper's face in front of mine, telling me that James had been taken care of… that everything was going to be all right. I wanted to believe him… there was something in those beautiful, golden eyes that made me believe him…

Jasper then told me that he would stay with me, that he loved me… and feeling safe in his strong yet gentle arms and relieved that it was finally over, I closed my eyes and fell into the welcoming darkness…

* * *

I slowly opened my eyes, squinting slightly as they adjusted to the sunlight streaming in through the blinds over the window. I knew at once that I was in the camp's hospital- where else _would_ I be after the beating I had taken from James? I could feel a bandage on the back of my head where I had hit it against the tree, my elbow and knee had small bandages, my back was wrapped where I had hit it on the stereo, and my right hand and wrist were so wrapped up that I could hardly see the skin beneath. Not that I wanted to, by any means…

"You're finally awake."

At the sound of the quiet voice, I slowly looked to my left and saw that Jasper was sitting in a chair beside my bed, giving me a small and what I assumed to be relieved smile. "Jazz… I'm so sorry…" I muttered, attempting to sit up on the bed with only my left hand and complete lack of balance.

Jasper instantly reached forward and helped me to sit up slowly before gently pushing me back against the headboard. "What are _you_ sorry for?" he asked in disbelief. "If anything, _I_ should be the one apologizing to _you_ for not reaching you sooner. But you just left so suddenly… None of us saw it coming."

I sighed, feeling ashamed for worrying all of them so much. "Is Carlisle angry with me?" I wondered quietly.

Surprisingly, Jasper laughed at my question. "No, Alice. He isn't angry with you," he assured me. "He would have been angry if you wouldn't have come out of this alive, though. But he is wondering how you are so interested in grand theft auto."

"I really am sorry about that," I mumbled. "I didn't want to take his car, but James was making threats, and I had to get to the camp, and… and he said he was going to kill you, and… I just wasn't thinking clearly…"

Jasper was suddenly sitting on the bed beside me and wrapped his arms around me in a tight yet cautious embrace, and I hugged him tightly back as I buried my face into his shoulder and began to cry a little. "I was so scared, Jazz…"

"And I was scared for you," Jasper told me, lightly kissing the top of my head. "When Carlisle told me that you had left, I wasn't sure what to do. I figured that you were heading back to the camp, but I wasn't sure why. I'm just sorry that you had to suffer through so much pain. I couldn't reach you fast enough… I thought I was going to lose you."

I laughed slightly, despite the situation. "And here I thought I was going to save you," I murmured, my voice muffled slightly by his shirt.

Jasper slowly raised my head up so that I was looking at him, and he gently wiped my tears away. "What did James say to you that made you leave?" he asked quietly.

"Well… he called me and told me that you weren't, quote, 'in the position to talk,'" I answered him, trying to remember all of the details. "Then, you began to scream in the background, and he told me that he only way to save you was to go back to the camp and meet him there. Then, he also told me that some of my human friends would die if I didn't go, so I thought that I had no choice but to do what he wanted. Of course, when I got there, none of you were there, and the screams were only from a damn recording… I fell for James' trap…"

"I knew James would try to get you to come back to the campsite, but I didn't think that he would use me against you," Jasper muttered, tightening his arm around me. "I'm so sorry, Alice. Though you were hurt, I am just relieved that I was able to reach you before it was too late." His gaze flickered nervously to my crushed hand. "I heard you calling for me, and I believe that's what allowed me to get to you in time."

So, Jasper _had_ heard me? Ha, James had been wrong! I shrugged casually as I tried to pass my injuries off as nothing major. "Yeah, I'll survive." But then, I bit my bottom lip as I debated whether or not I should ask the question that was just begging to be asked. After a moment, I decided to ask it. "Jazz, why did you allow Bella to stop the transformation from occurring? I mean, I could be one of you right now, and you wouldn't have to be worried about protecting me all the time."

Jasper sighed heavily. "You still have a choice, Alice, and we didn't have to resort to that final option since you would not have died from your injuries if James had not bitten you," he said. "You still have your humanity, and I will not take that away from you since you still have that choice."

I sighed as well, tears rushing to my eyes again as I laid my head on Jasper's shoulder while he wrapped his arm around me and held me close to him. I could tell that Jasper wasn't being entirely truthful with me, that there was something he was leaving out. And though neither one of us were budging in our decision, I knew that one of us would move eventually, one of us would convince the other. And that person would be me.

Then, my eyes widened with surprise when I saw the table on the other side of the bed, covered with cards, candy, and flowers. "Jazz, what's all this?"

"It's all for you," Jasper told me with a smile as he sat up to look at the gifts better. "The cards are from your human friends, but I believe the one on top may be from Seth Clearwater. The boxes of candy are from Emmett, Edward, Carlisle, Sam, and Billy. The vase of white lilies is from Rosalie, Esme, and Bella, and the red roses are from Jacob."

"Can I see the cards?" I asked, trying my best to ignore the roses. Though I had to admit, they were very pretty…

Jasper's eyes shone with amusement. "I don't know. Can you?"

I rolled my eyes with annoyance. "Fine. _May_ I see the cards?"

"Sure, of course." Jasper carefully reached across me and picked up the stack of cards, placing them in my lap. I used my left, functioning hand to open the top one, which was from Seth, and I gasped quietly when I saw a silver, crescent-moon charm inside of it. Then, I laughed a little at his message, which read:

_Alice,_

_Way to take on a vampire, girl! Just do us a favor and never do it again._

_Seth_

I set the card on the bed beside me before opening the next one, which as from Mike. But my eyes narrowed when I read his message. "'I'm sorry to hear about the _hiking accident_?'" I asked, looking up at Jasper with confusion. "What hiking accident?"

A broad smile appeared on Jasper's face at my question. "Oh, yeah. We needed an excuse for why you were in the hospital for three days, so Emmett told everyone that we took you hiking, and you tripped over a tree root," he explained. "You fell down a steep hill, hitting your head on a tree before crushing your hand between two large rocks."

I only stared at Jasper, dumbfounded. "Let me get this straight," I muttered. "I've been out for three days in the hospital because of a _hiking accident_?"

"Pretty much," Jasper replied with a slight laugh. "Everyone believed it, so we decided not to ask questions. But, it is Emmett we are talking about, so you can count on him to come up with something that would injure you."

The rest of the cards were pretty much the same- wishing me a speedy recovery and telling me to avoid trees and large rocks while hiking. Once I was done reading them, Jasper took them from me and placed them back on the table with the flowers and candy.

"So, I get something from everyone except for you, Jazz?" I said with fake disappointment, even pouting a little for added effect.

Jasper pretended to look hurt. "What kind of guy to you take me for, Alice?" he replied. "Of course I have something for you. It's just not material."

I smiled back up at him when I realized what he meant. "Those are the best kinds of get-well-soon gifts," I muttered.

"I agree," Jasper whispered from where he was lying beside me again. Then, he slowly leaned over, his cold lips meeting mine in a tender kiss. I returned it, and then I used my left hand to pull him closer so that my body was pressed lightly against his. Our kiss intensified, though Jasper was trying to be careful not to hurt me due to my injuries, and then we even deepened it after a hesitant moment. That seemed to be coming easier for him now. Either that or Jasper was just relieved that I was still alive. I wasn't sure which…

We pulled away after a moment, and I put my head on Jasper's chest over his still heart. "I love you, Jazz," I muttered, putting my arm around his waist to keep him close to me.

Jasper leaned down and kissed my head, wrapping his arms around me securely. "I love you too, Alice."

Feeling comfortable in his cold, sturdy arms, I closed my eyes, about to fall back into sleep. But then, I jumped a little and my eyes snapped open when the newly put-in door of the room opened. I smiled slightly as I watched Carlisle enter, a smile appearing on his own face when he saw Jasper and I.

"Oh, good. You're awake, Alice."

"In theory," I muttered, stretching slightly as I sat up a bit. Jasper stayed close to my side with his arm wrapped around my shoulders.

"Well, we are very glad to have you back with us, Alice," Carlisle told me as he sat on the bed on my other side. "So, how are you feeling?"

"Sore," I said truthfully. My whole body seemed to be protesting to the slightest movements- a single breath or even each heartbeat. But it was a dull pain, not a sharp one, that was very annoying. It was almost as if I had a bunch of morphine or something in me, which was actually probably the case.

"Your hand isn't hurting you too much?" Carlisle continued to ask, his golden eyes flickering to my bandaged hand.

I looked down at it, able to see some of the purple skin beneath the bandage. "Not too bad right now," I answered. "I imagine it will get worse."

Carlisle smiled apologetically. "I'm afraid so," he replied. "But when it does get worse, let me know so I can give you some more painkillers. How is your bite?"

"Oh." I automatically raised my hand and ran my fingers delicately over the slightly raised mark at the base of my neck. Jasper's eyes darkened. "Fine, I guess. I can't even feel it."

"Good. Thank goodness you we got the venom out of you before it was too late," Carlisle muttered. "You held on for a long time, Alice…"

"Well, whatever happened, Carlisle, I can certainly say that I wasn't thinking about fighting it or anything," I said. "All I could think about was the pain." At these words, Jasper's arm tightened around me, and I could tell that he still felt guilty about what happened to me.

Carlisle nodded, but he still appeared thoughtful. But then, a small smile spread across his face. "Are you in the mood for company, Alice? There are some people that are very anxious to see you."

At first, I felt like I _really_ didn't want to see anyone else. But then, I sighed and nodded slightly. "Yeah, sure," I told him. "I can see them now."

"All right. I'll bring them in." Carlisle stood and walked over to the door, opening it before leaning out into the waiting room. "Come on in. Maybe only a couple at a time would be best."

I watched the door, suddenly feeling nervous. I had to wonder just how many people wanted to see me now. But a broad smile appeared on my face and my worries vanished when I saw the first two people who entered. "Ed! Em!"

"What the hell do you think you were doing, Al?" Emmett demanded as he and Edward approached the bed that Jasper and I were sitting on. "How could you even _think_ of stealing Carlisle's car without me?!"

"Don't get any ideas, Emmett…" Carlisle muttered with slight annoyance, but a smile appeared on his face anyway since I was being reunited with my brothers. He was probably as surprised as Emmett that I had actually pulled off that stunt alone.

"I'm hurt, Em," I said with fake betrayal. "I get the crap beat out of me by James, and all you care about is that I stole Carlisle's car without you?"

"Hey, I'm hurt too, Sis," Emmett replied in his defense. "How could you ever do that to me?" But, he couldn't keep a straight face as he soon began to laugh.

Edward rolled his eyes as he gave me only a quick, one-armed hug since he wasn't very comfortable with being too close to me for too long of a time without Bella there just yet. "That was a very stupid thing to do though, Alice, leaving to face James on your own," he told me. "When we learned what you were doing…"

I sighed, reaching forward and grabbing Edward's cold, stone hand with my left one. "Yes, that may be, but I'm fine, Ed," I replied. "Except for some cuts, a bite mark, a long bruise across my back, and a broken hand, I'm fine." That last part was a bit of an understatement. My hand was completely crushed beyond recognition.

With another sigh, Edward slowly leaned forward and gently kissed my forehead. "I'm just relieved I didn't lose my favorite little sister."

"I'm your _only_ little sister, Ed."

"All the more reason why it's important that I still have you."

The only other people who came in were Bella, Rosalie, and Esme- I guess my human friends and the wolves had been in and out over the three days that I had been unconscious. That was perfectly fine with me. There weren't any other people I wanted to see at that time other than my vampire family. They sat around my bed, simply laughing and talking as all reference to the incident with James were forgotten- a mere stone thrown into the deepest ocean.

At last, it was all finally over.

* * *

The Cullens sat with me until about nine that night when Carlisle finally pushed everyone out, except for Jasper, since he said I needed the rest. Even though I had loved talking to everyone, I appreciated having some more alone time with Jasper since he was the one I wanted with me the most and there were things that I wanted to talk only to him about that I didn't want to discuss in front of everyone else.

Jasper lay beside me in the hospital bed with his arms around me, and I had my head resting in the crook of his neck, which I found to be very comfortable. The lights had been turned off, so the only source of light was the moon's soft rays coming in through the window above my bed. Up until now, we had been simply lying together like this, so close that you could hardly tell where my body ended and his began, finding serenity in the fact that we were together again and we were both alive. But now, I had to say what had been burning in my mind since my encounter with James.

"Jazz, there's still one thing about James that I don't understand," I muttered.

"What's that?" Jasper asked, looking down at me curiously.

I sighed and looked back up at him. "He saw past my visions, Jazz," I answered him with some fear in my voice. "I saw him go after the car when he realized that it was Bella with you and not me, but I couldn't see that he had set that trap for me. I couldn't see that he really didn't have you… I didn't see Emmett being mauled by that bear either. What if my visions are leaving, Jazz? What if I can't see anymore?"

Jasper appeared to be thoughtful for a moment. "I don't think you're losing your visions, Alice," he replied. "You told me that what you saw changes as a person changes their mind. James probably made his plan with the stereo spontaneously so that you couldn't see it. The same probably happened with his plan of using that bear to attack Emmett. That, and you weren't really focusing on James' future. You were more concerned about your own and ours."

At his words, my anxiety calmed slightly. I knew that he was right. My visions were subjective, which meant that the future changed when a person changed their mind. But still. The fact that James knew how to get around my visions was unnerving…

"Don't be scared," Jasper whispered in my ear, his cool breath on my skin making me shiver. Then, he raised his hand and ran his fingers lightly over my cheek. I closed my eyes when they moved to my throat, but I opened them again when his fingers hesitated at the base of my neck… the place where James had bitten me.

I slowly moved my gaze up to Jasper's golden eyes. Then, I raised my left hand and delicately placed it at the base of his neck where the scar remained from where Maria had bitten him decades before. "Jazz, I'm like you now," I whispered with sudden realization. "My scar is in the same spot where your first one is."

Jasper's face darkened slightly at the memory, but then, he smiled slightly as he gently kissed my forehead. "Thankfully, there was a different outcome," he murmured.

"Perhaps." Then, I reached up and pulled his lips down to mine. The kiss lasted for a long moment, but then Jasper broke away and gently pushed my head back down to his chest. "Sleep now, Alice," he told me quietly. "I promise that I will still be here when you wake up. I won't leave you again."

Sighing with a sense of contentment, I scooted a little closer to Jasper so that I could be comfortable. Closing my eyes as a gentle feeling of calm passed through me, I knew that his words were true and that he truly wouldn't leave again.

* * *

"Ali!"

I sighed, resigned to that nickname, but I still smiled as Jacob's long, hot arms wrapped around me tightly. I admit, I was happy to see him, though he ruined my moment of relaxation by the lake before lunch while I waited for Jasper to come back from hunting. "Ow, Jake. Careful…" Though it had been a few days since I had left the hospital, I was still very sore. Let's just say that I was lucky that Jasper had even allowed me out of the cabin so I could watch the kickball game today. He had kept me under strict cabin arrest since Carlisle had released me, just so he could keep an eye on me to make sure that I wouldn't spontaneously drop dead.

Not that I minded all of the alone time with him or anything…

"Oh, sorry," Jacob said apologetically as he released me. But he kept his hot hands on my arms, a broad smile on his face as he looked me over. "It's good to see you up and around again, Ali."

I smiled in return as I laughed a little. "_Alice_," I corrected for old times' sake.

Then, my smile broadened when I felt a familiar, cold arm wrapped around my waist as Jacob dropped his hands, and I looked up into the smiling face of Jasper. "See what happens when I leave you?" he asked jokingly. "I'm gone for a moment and the wolves descend on you."

Jacob glared on him as he crossed his arms, but then even he laughed a little at the pun. "So, are you playing in the kickball game, leech?"

"I was thinking about it," Jasper replied casually. "How about you, mongrel?"

"Yeah, I was thinking about it."

Oh, no. I recognized the competitiveness in their voices well…

"You know, I bet we could beat you in a game of kickball any day," Jacob suddenly said with a flare of confidence.

Jasper's eyes flickered with the excitement of a challenge. "No way," he countered. "My siblings and I could defeat you easily." From the way I had seen them play baseball, I didn't doubt that Jasper's argument was a valid one.

Jacob growled softly, but it wasn't a threatening sound. It was more competitive than anything. "All right. Forget the humans," he muttered. "Us against you in a game of kickball. Three o'clock."

"My family will beat your pack by so much that you'll run away with your tails between your legs, dog," Jasper boasted with a smirk.

"You're on, bloodsucker!" Then, Jacob turned on his heel and rushed off to find Sam and the other wolves, no doubt. This was certainly going to be interesting… much more so than its human counterpart.

"Esme's going to have a hell of a time ensuring that there's no cheating in this game since Carlisle's going to have to play to make the teams even," Jasper commented with a smile, looking down at me with a broad smile. I knew that he was excited since he didn't have to restrain his true strength by playing with humans in a game of kickball anymore. "We could use another referee to help her."

I groaned, burying my face into his chest as Jasper laughed a little. "I was afraid for my life when I was a referee for your baseball game, and now you're asking me to do the same for an extreme game of kickball?" I muttered.

"It won't be so bad," Jasper promised, lifting my face up delicately before leaning down and quickly kissing my lips. "I'll make sure nothing happens to you, even though I don't believe that you have to worry. It's all in good fun."

Good fun, huh? I'd believe that when I saw it. "Well… I guess I could do this once more," I said, smiling up at him. "But that's only because I love you so much."

Jasper smiled back, running his hand delicately through my hair. "I love you too," he muttered, gently pulling me closer to him. It was at that moment I realized that he was still wary about the recent attack on me, and he was just as afraid to lose me as I was to lose him.

"I'll be fine, Jazz. I'm not going anywhere," I assured him quietly, taking his hand in my good one. "I promise I won't run after sadistic, murdering vampires again."

"You had better not." Then, Jasper gently pressed his cold lips against mine again. The kiss lasted a little longer this time before we broke apart.

"Should we get our siblings to prepare them for the game later?" he asked.

"Sure." I nodded, and Jasper took my left hand in his as we began to head away from the lake toward the mess hall. Then, something that Mike had told me that seemed like it had been ages ago came back to me, and I looked up at the vampire walking beside me. "Hey, Jazz?"

"Yes, Alice?" Jasper looked back down at me curiously.

"You know how that dance is coming up?" Why was I blushing? It's not like I only had a crush on Jasper and we hadn't been dating for the past couple of months or anything. He _was_ my boyfriend after all…

"Yes. What about it?"

"Would you go with me?" I asked quietly, feeling slightly nervous. This was the first time I had ever asked a guy out to anything.

A broad smile appeared on Jasper's face as we stopped walking, and he wrapped his arm around me gently. "Do you even have to ask me?" he said, kissing my forehead. "I wouldn't dream of going with anyone else."

My smile mirrored his as I wrapped my arms around him tightly. "Thanks, Jazz," I whispered. "That would make the end of this summer perfect." Then, I stood up on my toes as I pushed his lips down to mine, not minding who saw.

And, hey. If these types of risks worked out so well, I would have to consider taking them more often.

**A/N**: That's it for this one! As you can see, things are starting to get better for our favorite vamps. I hope you liked it! Up next is the actual last chapter of the story, so we're really winding down. We only have the epilogue and a little something else at the end after that. Thanks for reading! Your reviews are much appreciated! Now, enjoy the preview!

**Next Chapter**: _"All We Need is Just a Little Patience"_

_I looked down at the large-not to mention heavy- black cast that covered my right hand. Though I had tried to make up for it by sporting some eye shadow and a purple headband in my short hair, the ugly thing still stood out dominantly…_

"_Don't worry about that," Bella muttered, gently pushing my right hand down and taking my left one. "We don't care that you have that cast, and Jasper certainly won't, and that's what matters. You look beautiful, Alice."_

Xxx

_"You are still perfect in my eyes," Jasper said before kissing my forehead. "And there is nothing you can say that will make me believe otherwise."_

Xxx

_Then, I sighed as another thought occurred to me. "Hey, Em?"_

_"Yeah?"_

_"Do you think Ed will let me dance with Jasper at all tonight?" I asked._

Xxx

_I turned to look behind me as Edward moved his gaze up, watching as Jasper approached us. "Alice, may I have this dance?" he asked quietly as he extended his hand out toward me, and I knew that he knew the significance behind this song like I did._

_My eyes traveled up to Edward nervously, wondering what he would do._

Xxx

_"I loved you before I even knew you," I repeated, looking up at him. "Shortly before I met you, I started having visions of you. From that point on, I knew I loved you."_

_Jasper smiled down at me, but there was a strange glint in his eye that I couldn't read. Had he already known that? Or was it something else he knew that I wasn't aware of?_


	30. Chapter 29: All We Need is Patience

**Disclaimer**: Nope! The characters and the songs that will be used in this chapter are not mine! All credit goes to Stephenie Meyer, Aerosmith, The Killers, and Guns N' Roses. I am not Meyer, nor am I a part of one of those three awesome bands!

**A/N**: Hey! I'm glad you all liked that last chapter! We're really starting to wind down now, but don't worry. A sequel is in the works. I'm still on chapter eleven, but I haven't had too much time for writing lately. Hopefully, that will pick up soon since my AP classes are drawing to a close. But anyway, there are three songs that will be used in here, and I will explain more about them at the end. I think that's really all I have to say this time, so enjoy!

_Chapter 29- "All We Need is Just a Little Patience"_

After much drama, action, heated arguments, and even death threats, the kickball game between my vampire family and werewolf friends finally came to a close after many hours. It drew on late into the night until Billy came to end it so we wouldn't raise any suspicion if any of the human campers who had snuck out of their cabins happened to stumble upon us, and because the Cullens were one run ahead at that point, they were declared the winners. The wolves, mainly Jacob, demanded a rematch, but I wasn't sure if that was going to be possible since the camp was going to be ending next week. But at least they didn't lose by a lot. They should have been happy about that.

Finally, though it seemed like forever, the night of the dance arrived. I was in my cabin with Bella and Rosalie, and as I had expected, they both looked stunning in their choices. Blue was definitely Bella's best color, and the red balanced nicely with Rosalie's light hair. The three of us stood in front of a small mirror sitting on the desk that Rosalie had brought along, trying our best to see ourselves in it since the frame was so small.

"Hmm… what do you think?" Rosalie asked, spinning around once in her low-cut dress try to see how she looked.

"Rose, you look beautiful," I muttered. "That isn't even a question. But I think you should pull some of your hair back to make a small ponytail. It would be a nice touch."

"Really?" Rosalie took a part of her hair and pulled it back, bending down to look in the mirror as she experimented with the look. "Oh, you're right, Alice. I like it." Then, she turned to get a hair tie out of her bag that was sitting on the bed.

I smiled and turned to Bella, who was standing next to me wearing two clips in her somewhat wavy hair since she had let me style it. "Are you looking forward to tonight?" I wondered. "You look beautiful too."

"Yes, I am looking forward to it," Bella told me with a slight laugh. "And thank you. But you look gorgeous yourself."

"I don't know about that…" I looked down at the large-not to mention heavy- black cast that covered my right hand that Carlisle had recently put on me. Though I had tried to make up for it by sporting some eye shadow and a purple headband in my short hair to match my dress, the ugly thing still stood out dominantly… Not to mention the cuts and bruises on my face were still visible, even with the makeup I had put on.

"Don't worry about that," Bella muttered, gently pushing my right hand down and taking my left one. "We don't care that you have that cast, and Jasper certainly won't, and that's what matters. You look beautiful, Alice."

After a moment, I gave her a small, gracious smile. "Thanks, Bella."

"It's not like she's lying, Alice," Rosalie said as she joined us, looking me over with her keen eye. "It's a beautiful shade of purple, which is definitely your color." Then, her eyes gleamed as she looked at my legs. "Jasper will like that slit."

"And that triangular cut in the side," Bella added with a smirk, looking at the area just above my hip.

I blushed fiercely and turned away from my friends, who were laughing at my poor expense. Stupid hormones…

About ten minutes later, once we were all finally ready, I left the cabin into mild night air with Bella and Rosalie. There were a lot of other girls heading down toward the lake where the dance was going to be held with a range of dresses and hairstyles, but they all looked at us with some jealousy when they passed us. Or, at least they looked at my two friends with jealousy…

We walked down the dark path that led to the joined one that would lead us to the parking lot, and when we rounded the corner, my breath caught in my chest when I saw Jasper standing with Emmett and Edward, waiting for us. They were all wearing matching tuxedos, but he looked absolutely stunning…

Rosalie smiled broadly as she approached Emmett, kissing him as he wound his arm around her waist. Bella and Edward also kissed as she took his hand in hers. Then, I reached Jasper, and he had to lean down to kiss me before he held out his arm for me to take. I smiled broadly as I took it, and we began to follow our siblings as we continued our walk toward the lake.

"You look beautiful," Jasper whispered to me.

I looked back up at him with disbelief. "Not nearly as beautiful as Bella or Rosalie," I muttered.

Jasper sighed and put his free hand beneath my chin, tilting my face up so that I was now looking him in the eye. "You are not as beautiful as Bella or Rosalie," he told me, and my gaze faltered. Wasn't he supposed to make me feel _better_? "You are _more_ beautiful."

"But what about this?" I held up my right hand to show him my cast and emphasize my point. "What about my cuts, my bruises?"

"You are still perfect in my eyes," Jasper said before kissing my forehead. "And there isn't anything you can say that will make me believe otherwise."

Despite myself, I smiled and leaned closer to him as we walked across the parking lot. What was it about him that made me believe every word he said? Jasper's smile broadened, and he pulled me even closer to him.

When we reached the lake, the sight took my breath away. It was absolutely beautiful. White lights had been strung up in the trees that surrounded the dance area, making the lake shimmer almost magically. Tables had been set up, one for food and drinks and the other for the stereo, which was the source of the music. I looked around the area, seeing Mike and Jessica dancing together in the crowd and Eric and Angela dancing near the stereo since they were in charge of which songs were played. I even saw Tyler dancing with that one Lauren girl near the water's edge. After a closer look, I could see Sam, Seth, and Leah mingled in with the kids from school also. The only one I didn't see was…

"Punch, Ali?"

Ah, there he was. I turned to look over my shoulder, seeing that Jacob was standing behind me with two plastic cups in his hands. "Sure. Thank you, Jake," I answered, taking the cup from him with my working hand.

Jacob smiled back at me. "You look beautiful, Ali," he commented, which made Jasper snarl slightly.

I looked up at Jasper nervously, seeing that he was looking at Jacob warningly, but before I could say anything to try to break up the potential argument, I heard the beginning notes of a song I knew well.

_"I could stay awake_

_Just to hear you breathin' _

_Watch you smile while you are sleepin' _

_While you're far away and dreamin' _

_I could spend my life _

_In this sweet surrender _

_I could stay lost in this moment _

_Forever…"_

"Hey, Jazz," Emmett said, suddenly coming up to us with Rosalie on his arm. "Do you mind if I steal my sis for this song?"

Jasper smiled in return. "No, not at all," he replied. "As long as I can steal mine."

"Sure." Emmett took my left hand in his since I had moved the punch glass while Rosalie placed her hands on Jasper's shoulders. I glanced behind me at Jacob, giving him an apologetic smile as I handed him back the cup before my oldest brother led me out onto the dance floor while Jasper did the same with Rosalie. I could already see Edward and Bella dancing together, staring deep into each other's eyes as the moved. They were adorable. Then, Emmett placed his other hand on my waist, and we began to dance.

"So, how are you feeling, Al?" he asked as we gently swayed to the beautiful melody together.

"I'm feeling all right," I answered with a smile. "I'm just glad this whole James thing is over."

"Me too," Emmett agreed, a hint of anger in his tone at the mention of James. "I think it's just hard to believe that we're going home tomorrow."

I nodded in agreement. "That it is. Edward told me that you were going to be staying with Carlisle now." Then, I sighed as another thought occurred to me. "Hey, Em?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you think Ed will let me dance with Jazz at all tonight?" I asked. "I mean, he's been so protective of me around him for a long time…"

To my surprise, Emmett laughed. "I don't know, Al," he answered. "But even if he doesn't approve, do so anyway. You're Jazz's girlfriend. He can't stop you from dancing with him. I'll make sure of it. But I'm not sure if it will be an issue. After all, Ed was the one who saved him from James." I

blinked with surprise at this statement. Edward had saved Jasper? I hadn't expected to hear that…

But before I could comment further, the Aerosmith song ended and was replaced by a more upbeat song by The Killers.

_"You sit there in your heartache _

_Waitin' on some beautiful boy to _

_To save you from your old ways _

_You play forgiveness _

_Watch it now _

_Here he come…"_

"I gotta' find Rose," Emmett said with a broad smile. "I love this song!"

I smiled to myself as I watched Emmett pull Rosalie into his arms to dance to this song, but before I could make my way over to Jasper, another pair of cold hands gently grabbed my arms. "Could I have this dance, Alice?" Edward asked.

"Sure, of course, Ed," I answered, turning to face him when I saw that Jasper had grabbed Bella and was dancing with her. Since it was a higher energy song, our movements were faster together, but still just as graceful.

"Alice, I just wanted to tell you how sorry I am about my early judgments of Jasper," Edward muttered to me as he spun me in a circle under his arm. "It was wrong of me. I can see now that you were right and he is a great guy for you. He loves you, Alice, more than you know. When he found out that you had gone back to the campsite on your own…"

I felt a thin line of tears form in my eyes, but I was successfully able to hold them back. "Ed…"

Then, that song ended as well, and Edward twirled me one more time during the final chord. I smiled up at him, hugging him tightly. "Thank you," I whispered.

Edward smiled back down at me, running his hand through my hair. I was sure that he understood what I was referring to. "You're welcome, little freak."

I pretended to glare up at him, but then I gasped when I instantly recognized the song that came on next. A memory from before the Montana trip immediately came back to me, and I could see myself clearly waking up after a nightmare when I spent the night at the Cullens' house, finding Jasper in the living room playing his guitar. I could even almost hear him singing the words…

_"Shed a tear 'cause I'm missing you _

_I'm still all right to smile _

_Girl, I think about you every day now…"_

It was one of my favorite songs, but more importantly, I considered it to be my and Jasper's song. We shared this song that night while he played it on the couch with me sitting beside him, and it was something that was forever locked in my memory.

I turned to look behind me as Edward moved his gaze up, watching as Jasper approached us. "Alice, may I have this dance?" he asked quietly as he extended his hand out toward me, and I knew that he knew the significance behind this song like I did.

My eyes traveled up to Edward nervously, wondering what he would do. My brother sighed almost thoughtfully, and after a long moment, he took my left hand and gently placed it in Jasper's. More tears pricked my eyes at this simple action since there was so much meaning behind it. It was almost as though he was "passing me off" to Jasper, showing that he had his approval.

"Take good care of her, Jasper," Edward whispered with a smile, turning from us and taking Rosalie as his dance partner since Emmett was already dancing with Bella.

I smiled up at Jasper as he wound his arm around my waist, pulling me closer to him as we began to move together to the gentle melody. He returned the smile as he laughed a little. "You say you're so clumsy, and yet you can dance," he muttered, his golden eyes shining playfully.

"Yeah, well, dancing's pretty much the only thing I can do gracefully," I replied, laughing a little myself as I blinked my tears away. "I can hardly even walk and chew gum at the same time."

Jasper raised his eyebrow incredulously. "That's… pretty pathetic, Alice."

A smile spread across my face. Hey, there was no shame in being a klutz. "I know."

We continued to move in silence for a while, simply gazing into each other's eyes. Then, a small smile appeared on Jasper's face as he quietly sang a line of the chorus to me, which I did the same.

"All we need is just a little patience…"

My smile broadened as I leaned forward and rested my head on Jasper's chest. As I moved gently in his arms, I knew that there was no place I would rather be. I had never experienced this kind of happiness before. It was a feeling I only had by being with him. I never wanted this dance, this perfect moment, to end. I wanted to stay with him like this forever…

But much too soon, the song ended. I sighed as Jasper and I stopped swaying, and I looked up at him as another song began that I couldn't distinguish. Jasper smiled back at me before leaning down and placing a tender kiss on my lips. I would my arms around his waist once we broke apart and placed my ear over his still heart, imagining the calming sound of the heartbeat that had once been pulsing strongly there. I could almost hear it since it was a sound that was familiar to me though I had obviously never heard it, but I somehow knew it almost as well as I knew my own heart…

"Shall we go to our place one more time so that your last memory of it will be a pleasant one?" Jasper suddenly asked me, his cold breath making me shiver slightly. I thought I'd be used to that by now...

"Yes, that would be great," I answered quietly.

Jasper smiled in return, a smile that made my heart flutter as he took my hand in his and began to lead me away from the lake. The parking lot was dark as we crossed it, leaving the gentle lights from the lake behind us. The path that led up the hill, though nearly pitch black, wasn't nearly as menacing now as it had been just a week ago when I had come here alone to face James since I now had Jasper by my side and I was not here for such a grim reason. Jasper squeezed my hand gently since he could sense my feelings, and we finally reached the top of the hill- the one place at the camp that held a special place in my heart.

There was hardly any moon in the sky since it had been full last time I was up here. But there was still enough light so that we could see each other, though I doubted that Jasper would have had any trouble seeing me even if there was no light. I stood at the peak of the hill, looking down at the lake reflecting the bright lights beneath me, at all of the people swaying as they danced…

Then, I sighed and closed my eyes as Jasper wrapped his arms around my waist from behind, his cold fingers gently running over the exposed skin on my left side, and I leaned my head back against him. "This was where we had our first kiss," he whispered, his tone pensive.

I smiled at the memory. "That's when you thought I was afraid of you," I muttered, opening my eyes to look up into his golden ones. They sure caught the moonlight beautifully… "This is also where you showed me your scars."

"And you weren't afraid of them," Jasper said, his smile now mirroring my own. "You are one of the few people who isn't at least intimidated by them, and you are definitely the only human… You slapped Jacob here too."

That thought actually made me laugh a little. "Only because he hurt you," I told him.

"He only hurt me because I had to protect you since you were being so reckless," Jasper replied with a grin.

I sighed, not able to argue with that as I looked down at the black cast covering my right hand. I knew that the damage wasn't from slapping Jacob anymore since it was the same hand, but from James completely crushing it so that I hardly recognized it as being my hand. A thin line of tears formed in my eyes then since I knew what else had happened here…

"This was where I almost became one of you," I whispered, turning in Jasper's arms to face him.

Jasper looked down at me hesitantly, gently placing his hand on the side of my head. "Alice…"

"No, Jasper. Can I please say something?" I interrupted. When he nodded, I hurriedly continued. "My biggest fear is losing you, Jazz. However long I have left to live is nothing when you live forever. I just… I don't want to be some… passing craze for you. When I die, you're just going to continue living your life as though I was never in it…"

"Alice, what are you talking about?" This time, it was Jasper who cut me off. "You're never going to be some passing craze for me. What gave you that idea?"

"Well, Rose told me that you had a girlfriend before you were turned, and you forgot about her…"

"That was when I was human, Alice," Jasper muttered, gently wiping away a stray tear that had fallen from my eye. "Bonds are much stronger when you're a vampire."

"Then why won't you turn me?" I demanded. "You won't lose me then. I want to be with you forever, Jazz… You should have let the transformation happen."

"Alice, listen. If you were ever changed, it would be by me," Jasper told me strictly.

My spirits suddenly lifted, and I'm sure that it could be seen on my face. "So, there's a chance?"

Jasper sighed as he wrapped his arms a little tighter around me and held me close to him. "Alice, enough now," he said, kissing the top of my head. I could tell by his tone that the conversation was dropped- but I was not going to give up, especially since it seemed as though there was now a chance that it could happen. "This is supposed to be a happy night, remember? No more tears."

I nodded, but I kept my face buried in his chest for a few minutes longer until my tears finally stopped. Then, a small smile appeared on my face when another thought came to me. "I loved you before I knew you, you know," I whispered suddenly.

"What?"

"I loved you before I even knew you," I repeated, looking up at him. "Shortly before I met you, I started having visions of you. From that point on, I knew I loved you." J

asper smiled down at me, but there was a strange glint in his eye that I couldn't read. Had he already known that? Or was it something else he knew that I wasn't aware of?

But before I could push the subject further, Jasper leaned down and pressed his lips against mine with slightly more passion than usual as he deepened it this time and I allowed him to. Well, if his goal was to get me to forget about the discussion, it worked since everything else was forgotten as I wrapped my arms around his neck- everything, that is, except for Jasper and I being together.

**A/N**: Well, that's it for that one. Hard to believe that this was the last actual chapter, huh? It's crazy! But I have to say I can really relate to Alice in this chapter since today is actually my prom day. The dance is tonight, but since last night, my mom and brother have been helping me to prepare (including my brother helping me to paint my toenails since my mom and I for some reason couldn't get it- it was hilarious!), and a lot of work does go into it, lol. But anyway, while I was writing this story, I was going through my iPod and trying to figure out which songs would be perfect for each of the couples. Alice and Jasper were easiest to figure out with "Patience" by Guns N' Roses, especially since I used that same song earlier in the story. I figured out Emmett and Rosalie's next, which was "When You Were Young" by The Killers. I was thinking about Rosalie's past and then Emmett coming into her life to become her future, and it just worked. Edward and Bella were the hardest, but I finally settled on "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing" by Aerosmith. I'm still not exactly sure why, but it seemed to work. I wanted to bring this across in the story somehow, and the dance just seemed perfect, which is why they're there. All right, so that's the explanation of the song choices. Now, here's what's going to happen. I'll give you a preview of the epilogue as usual, but when I post the epilogue, I'm going to also give you a bit of the preface from the sequel for the preview. After that, I will make one more update for this story, but I can't tell you what that's going to be yet since it will be a surprise. So, thank you for reading! Your reviews are much appreciated! And, here's the preview!

**Epilogue**:_ My Favorite Story_

_"Now remember, Alice, you have to stay with the story we came up with for your brothers," Carlisle said as he turned onto my street._

Xxx

_"Alice, dear, why don't you go up to your room? There's something up there for you. It's from your old house in Phoenix."_

Xxx

_I could tell by the shape and weight that it was a book, but which book could I have possibly forgotten? I slowly and carefully tore off the brown paper, and my eyes widened with shock when I saw the cover._

Xxx

_"It was my favorite story when I was young, Jazz…"_

_Jasper smiled slightly as he carefully took the book from me so he could look through it. "I know it was."_

Xxx

"_And you know that whenever I disappear, I will always reappear for you again, don't you?" he whispered._


	31. Epilogue: My Favorite Story

**Disclaimer**: Look at previous chapters to know that these characters aren't mine.

**A/N**: Hey! Thank you so much for your reviews, guys! I love them all! And since we're approaching 400 (I really can't believe it!), that will make the final chapter type thing I'm going to submit completely worth it! You guys are awesome! Thank you so much! So, before I keep you waiting any longer, here's the epilogue! I'll explain about the preview thing at the end. Enjoy!

_Epilogue- My Favorite Story_

I sat in the passenger seat of Carlisle's black Mercedes as he drove in the direction of my house after the long trip back from Montana. It was only the two of us- Esme had taken Rosalie and Bella home with her in her car with all of the luggage while Jasper, Emmett, and Edward easily ran the distance, mainly so Jasper could keep them from getting too restless from the car ride home. I wasn't really looking forward to seeing my grandmother since we had left on such bad terms, especially since my brothers would no longer be living with us since they now had to stay with Carlisle, but what I _was_ looking forward to was that Jasper had promised me that he would come to the house when I was settled in. And at least Edward and Emmett had promised that I could come and visit them as often as I wanted.

"Now remember, Alice, you have to stay with the story we came up with for your brothers," Carlisle said as we turned onto my street.

"They caught some strange yet potentially fatal disease, and they now have to be in your continuous care," I recited mechanically.

Carlisle smiled and laughed a little. "Right," he muttered, shaking his head slightly. "Even though if you think about it, they technically _are_ dead."

Surprisingly, that comment made me smile. "Yeah, technically," I agreed, a feeling of dread rising up within me as Carlisle pulled into my driveway and shut off the car. "Let's just get this over with."

I unbuckled my seatbelt and stepped out of the car into the twilight, opening the back door to grab one of my bags since Carlisle had already taken the other two so I wouldn't have to use my broken hand. Then, I followed him up to the front door, sighing as he rang the doorbell.

"Now, I want you to go up to your room as soon as you possibly can," Carlisle suddenly whispered to me as we waited.

Before I could ask him why, the door opened to reveal my grandmother, who was surprisingly smiling. "Oh, you're home!" she said, pulling me immediately into a tight embrace. She was actually glad to see me? What had happened since we've been gone? "My goodness, dear, what happened to your hand?" She delicately took my right hand in hers as she looked the massive black cast over.

"Hiking accident," I answered automatically, still in shock as I remembered the story Jasper had told me Emmett had come up with to explain my injuries. "I'll be all right, Grandma."

She smiled down at me, placing her hand lightly on the side of my head affectionately before pulling me inside the house. "Come on in now. Thank you for bringing her home, Carlisle."

"Of course." Carlisle followed us into the house since he still had my other two bags. "It was my pleasure, Mrs. Brandon."

"Just set your bags down by the couch, honey," my grandma told me when she saw my dazed expression as I looked around the living room- it was so strange being back in here again after a nearly full three months… "We'll put them away in the morning." I did as she said, taking my other bags from Carlisle one at a time when he offered them to me, and set them neatly in a row against the couch.

And then came the dreaded question.

"Where are your brothers?"

Carlisle sighed heavily, and I could see sorrow cleverly sewn into his expression. "You may want to have a seat, Mrs. Brandon."

Seeming to sense that something was wrong, my grandmother slowly sat down on the couch while Carlisle sat in the chair beside her. But before he could begin his explanation, she turned to look up at me. "Alice, dear, why don't you go to your room? There's something up there for you. It's from your old house in Phoenix- one of the girls who moved in found it, and her parents had it sent here. It's on your bed."

Wait. Had she really just called me _Alice_? I couldn't help but give her a small smile at this. But I was also confused by her statement. What could have possibly been left at my old house that I had forgotten? "All right, Grandma," I muttered. I then turned and left the living room, walking down the hallway until I reached the staircase. I paused at the base of them for a moment, straining my ears to hear their conversation. Though I couldn't make out Carlisle's words, I suddenly heard a quiet sob escape from my grandmother. I hated that we had to lie to her about my brothers, but it was for the best so there wouldn't be any suspicion raised. A thin line of tears formed in my eyes, but I blinked them away as I hurried up the stairs and into my room.

I decided to leave the light off as I shut the door behind me since there was enough moonlight coming in through my open window to light up the room. Mina sleepily looked up at me from her place at the foot of my bed as I collapsed onto it, and I scratched her head a little before picking up the package that my grandmother had left for me. I could tell by the shape and weight that it was a book, but which book could I have possibly forgotten? I slowly and carefully tore off the brown paper, and my eyes widened with shock when I saw the cover.

It was my old copy of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, my favorite book when I had been a child. I fondly remembered my parents reading it to me every night before I went to sleep, and it had turned into a family event since my dad would play the White Rabbit, my mom would play the Queen of Hearts, Edward would play the Mad Hatter, and Emmett would play the March Hare. It had always been my favorite story, and a good source of family bonding.

My hands shook slightly as I carefully opened the book, seeing that I had landed on an illustration of the Cheshire Cat. I smiled through the fresh wave of tears that threatened to fall as I lightly ran my fingers over the page, feeling as though I was meeting an old friend. He had always been my favorite character…

"What are you looking at, Alice?"

I looked up quickly at the sudden, quiet voice, and I saw that Jasper was now sitting on the bed beside me, looking at me curiously. I watched as Mina hissed at him before jumping onto the floor and running into my closet with fear. "I'm looking at my old copy of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland," I told him, shutting the book and holding it up so he could see the somewhat faded cover as I blinked my tears away. "The family that moved into our house in Phoenix recently found it and sent it here. It was my favorite story when I was young, Jazz…"

Jasper smiled slightly as he carefully took the book from me so he could look through it. "I know it was," he muttered, almost as if he remembered it.

"What do you mean?" I asked, surprised. How could he have possibly known about that?

"Well, it had your name in the title, does it not?" he answered casually with a shrug, his eyes gleaming as he looked over at me. "I can't think of any young child who wouldn't love a story with their name in it."

It was a good cover story, but I knew that wasn't the actual answer. I would have to get it out of him later. But for now… I watched as he leaned back against my pillow, and I lay down beside him with my head resting on his chest, silent as he slowly flipped through the pages. Then, he paused on the same illustration of the Cheshire Cat I had been looking at earlier, almost as if he recognized it, and I couldn't help but smile slightly.

"You know, you kind of remind me of the Cheshire Cat in a way," I suddenly told him.

"How is that?" Jasper muttered, looking down at me curiously.

I looked back up at him to meet his gaze. "Well, you're always appearing and disappearing," I explained. "But when you are with me, you're like a guide, just like the Cheshire Cat is for Alice in the book."

Jasper's golden gaze faltered, and I instantly wondered why my reference to the Cheshire Cat bothered him. But then, a small smile appeared on his face, and all signs that something was wrong vanished. "And you know that whenever I disappear, I will always reappear for you again, don't you?" he whispered.

"That I do, Cheshire," I muttered, using a nickname I just came up with for him. Once again, Jasper's expression darkened, but I leaned forward and pressed my lips gently against his in a kiss. He returned it with some hesitance at first, but his guard dropped shortly after, and he returned it with more intensity. We broke apart a moment later, and I laid my head back on his chest while he continued to go through the book.

Every couple of pages or so, Jasper would pause to study and illustration or read aloud a short passage, which always turned out to be one of my favorites from the story. How he knew so much about what I liked from the book, I wasn't sure. He probably had an idea from what he knew of my personality now. But his soothing voice and the feeling of his cold arms securely wrapped around me was comforting to me, and I soon fell into a light sleep.

* * *

_Jasper POV_

I glanced down at Alice, and I saw with relief that she was finally asleep. She was so exhausted from the hectic events of the summer, both physically and mentally, and her body desperately needed the rest. I was glad that she was finally getting it…

Then, my eyes moved back to the book I was holding. It was the same copy of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland I had held in my hands years before- it even smelled the same, just a bit mustier- which at the time, I had read aloud to a much younger audience. I looked down at the sleeping Alice I had wrapped in my arms again before studying the illustration of the Cheshire Cat that she liked so much. She had told me that I reminded her of the character- it had not been the first time I had been called by that name.

Sighing, I shut the book and set it down on the small table beside the bed. I shifted my position a little bit so Alice would be more comfortable, being careful not to wake her. She looked so peaceful while she slept, but so much more beautiful now, no longer child-like. I had always known that there was something special about her since the first time I saw her, and now, she was finally mine.

But was that enough to turn her like she wanted me to? Could I bring myself to put her through the pain of death so that she could live with me for eternity? Could I possibly take her life just so I could have her forever like I wanted? I wasn't sure if I was strong enough for that, even when it came to Alice…

Why hadn't I let the transformation occur after James had bitten her? I could have had her forever if I had… But it was the fact that James had been the one who would have changed her, and I couldn't allow that to happen. If it were meant to be that Alice would become one of us, it would be my venom that would stop her heart.

I was brought out of my thoughts by a quiet whimper, and I looked down and saw that Alice was now moving slightly in her sleep as if she was trying to get away from something, her smaller body tensing as her expression contorted into a look of pain. I could tell by the strong fear I felt coming from her that she was having a nightmare.

"Shh…" I wrapped my other arm around her as I focused on not allowing the powerful negative emotions to take over me, rubbing her back as I pulled her closer to me and kissed her forehead. The creases began to disappear when my lips made contact, and she wrapped her arm around my waist tightly as she scooted as close to me as she could.

"Jasper…" she muttered, sounding worried as though she was afraid I would leave her.

"I'm here, Alice," I told her quietly, continuing to rub soothing circles into her back. "You're safe. Rest easily now. I'm not going anywhere."

After a few minutes, Alice's body completely relaxed against mine, and I sighed with relief. At least her nightmare seemed to be over now since she suddenly felt very calm. She needed the peaceful sleep…

As I lay beside her in silence, simply feeling content watching her sleep as the hours went by as I listened to her soft breathing and steady heartbeat, I decided that I would keep her with me as a human for as long as I could though I would rather have her for eternity. I was unsure of what the future would bring, as I knew even she was with her unique ability. But I also knew that no matter what happened, Alice and I would make it through together.

**The End**

**A/N**: Omg, it's so weird to actually write those two words! But don't worry. The story isn't technically done yet. There's still one more update after this. As far as this update goes, there was some "epic foreshadowing" as my friend would call it in it, so hopefully you guys caught some of it. Oh, and since you asked, I did have fun at Prom! It was great! But, okay, back to this story. Here's how the next preview's going to work. I'm going to give you a section of the preface from the next one, so that will give you a little taste of it. Plus, the next update will have to do with the sequel also. So, I think you guys will enjoy that. Thanks for reading! Your reviews are much appreciated! And, enjoy the sneak peek!

**Sneak Peak from "Ice Moon"**: _Preface- The Half-Open Door_

_Tears immediately filled my eyes and rolled down my cheeks when I heard another familiar, tortured scream, having to move my gaze away from the half-open door. It was heart wrenching. How could she be so cruel? How could she be so heartless? How could she just stand by and allow him to suffer at the hands of the newborns? I nearly cried out in frustration at my helplessness. I only wanted the screams to stop so the one they came from didn't have to be in pain anymore…_

_This was all my fault. It was because of me that she was doing this since it was because of me that her mate was dead. If I hadn't been so reckless, I wouldn't have been in this position. It was because of _me_ that he was suffering through such tremendous pain…_

_But… hadn't it been _his_ fault for leaving me broken to begin with? Hadn't _he_ caused _me_ so much pain and suffering when he left me behind him, only leaving a big, gaping hole in his place? Hadn't _he_…_

_No, I couldn't place the blame on him since this truly was my fault… All the anger I felt toward him immediately slipped away as I watched him fall to the hard floor when he was tossed into the small, dark room through the half-open door, hardly having the strength to push himself up again. A quiet sob escaped from me as I looked at his beaten, battered form across the room from me as the door slammed completely shut behind him. _


	32. Trailer

**Disclaimer**: Nope, the characters aren't mine! This is the last time I'm saying this… for this story, anyway!

**A/N**: Hey, everyone! Thank you for all of your reviews! Well, I can officially say that this is the last update for this story! It's crazy, huh? But, that just means that we can get to "Ice Moon" sooner! Oh, in answer to some of your questions, I had a blue dress for prom. It had different shades kinda meshed together, and it had a sort of 1920s feel with the layered bottom. It was really pretty! But anyway, in answer to another question, the whole Cheshire Cat thing will be explained in the sequel, I promise! I've already written it, and it was supposed to be a bit vague in this one. It might be explained a little in this thing too. Now, what exactly is this? It's a trailer- yes, like you see in the movie theaters except it's written, and it will give you more of an idea of what "Ice Moon" is about. I've done these for my "National Treasure" stories, and they turn out working well, so I thought I'd try it here. The things in bold (except for names) is like that narrator guy who talks for all of those movie trailers, and the things italicized are the images you would see on the screen (and VO means voice over). It's written exactly like a trailer for a movie would be, so you have to imagine it that way. And yes, there is a background song like all the trailers have. This one is set to "I Hate Everything About You" by Three Days Grace (I really should be listening to that song instead of "No More Words" by Endeverafter, lol. Oh, well). So, shall we try this? Let's go! Enjoy the "trailer!"

_A black screen. Quiet crying is heard as it slowly fades into an image of a young girl with short, black hair sitting against a tree in a snow-covered wood. Cuts to a shot of a man, whose face is hidden, slowly approaching her._

**VO Alice** (_girl raises her head off her arms and extends them out toward the man; see that it's a younger Alice_): "He would come for me, I knew he would. I had seen him come…"

_Cuts to a shot of the younger Alice laying in bed while the man covers her with a blanket_

**VO Alice**: "But he was my friend, a friend who no one else knew."

**Man**: "You should be sleeping."

**Young Alice**: "So should you."

**Man**: "I don't sleep."

**Young Alice**: "Why? Because you're too busy watching over me?"

_Cuts to a shot of the man, his face still hidden, laughing as he runs his hand through Alice's hair_

**Man**: "Yes, because I'm too busy watching over you."

_Cuts to a shot of the young Alice panicking in a small, dark room_

**VO Alice**: "Nothing was wrong with me! I wasn't sick because I saw things other people didn't!"

_Cuts to a shot of a hand grabbing Alice roughly_

**Young Alice**: "Cheshire!"

_Instantly cuts to a shot of Alice, now a teenager, gasping as she sits up in a panic in her bed after her dream. Moves to a shot of the book Alice's Adventures in Wonderland before completely fading to black_

**Alice Brandon's life has gone well for the year after the life-altering trip in Montana…**

_Shows a sequence of shots:_

_Alice being hugged by her grandmother_

_Emmett laughing as he makes a joke, making Alice blush_

_The Cullen family all bombarding Jasper and Alice with snowballs_

_Alice falling off a chair and being caught by Jasper after she puts the star on top of the Christmas tree as Rosalie puts mistletoe over their heads_

**VO Jasper** (_he sets Alice down on the floor in a grocery store aisle after lifting her to reach a box of cereal on the top shelf_): "I'll do anything for you since you're-!"

**Alice**: "Vertically challenged?"

**Jasper** (_laughs_): "Well, I was going to say since you were my girlfriend, but that works too."

**Alice** (_sarcastically_): "Ha. You're funny."

_Cuts to a shot of Jasper and Alice slowly leaning close to each other, their lips meeting in a tender kiss_

… **until everything takes a drastic turn for the worst.**

_Cuts sharply to a black screen. The sounds of squealing tires, and explosion, and a panicked scream are heard_

**VO Jasper**: "Alice!"

_Fades into a shot of Jasper sitting on his bed, staring blankly out the window into the moonlight_

**VO Jasper**: "I am not the right one for you, Alice."

_Cuts to a shot of Alice staring at Jasper's back as they stand on a snow-covered path in the woods_

**Alice**: "What's going on, Jazz?"

**Jasper**: "We are leaving, Alice."

_Cuts to a shot of Alice, a single tear rolling down her cheek_

**Alice**: "Jasper, please don't do this."

_Cuts to a shot of Jasper, his golden eyes cold_

**Jasper**: "Alice, I do not want you with me."

_Cuts to a shot of Alice kicking the snow in front of her fiercely_

**Alice**: "If that's what you want…"

**Jasper**: "Take care, Alice."

**VO Alice**: (_Jasper turns and walks away from her_): "I love you."

**But even with the Cullens gone…**

_Shows a shot of Alice standing in the dark, dusty living room of the Cullen house_

… **danger still finds its way to her.**

_Shows a shot of Jessica and Angela screaming while Alice curses, slamming on the brakes of her car to avoid hitting a man who walked out onto the street in front of her_

**VO Laurent**: "I must say it's… unfortunate your Jasper isn't around anymore."

_Cuts to a shot of a shocked Alice standing in front of Laurent_

**Alice**: "How do you know about that?"

**Laurent**: "Victoria is keeping an eye on you, dear Alice."

_Cuts to a shot of Alice slowly backing away from Laurent_

**Laurent**: "She's after _you_. But, if it makes you feel any better, she does have her plans for poor Jasper as well…"

_Cuts to a shot of Alice sitting in a small, dark room, crying while tortured screams are heard. Fades into another shot of Jasper closing his eyes and sighing weakly_

_Cuts sharply to a black screen_

**VO Alice** (_panicking_): "Jasper, stay with me. Please, stay with me…"

**Now, Alice must pick up the pieces of her broken heart to not only put her own life back together…**

_Shows a shot of a sobbing Alice being held by her grandmother_

**Alice**: "I want him, Grandma."

_Cuts to a shot of Jacob sitting on a tree branch outside of Alice's bedroom window_

**Jacob**: "You're in pain, Ali. I can see it clearly in your eyes. It's that bloodsucker's fault…"

**Alice**: "I'm _fine_, Jake."

_Shows a slow-motion shot of Alice laughing as she walks with Jacob, Sam, and Emily in front of the stores in Port Angeles_

**VO Emily**: "All scars heal in time, dear."

… **but also to save the life of the one person she loves most.**

_Cuts to a shot of Alice sitting on her windowsill with Jacob sitting on the tree branch near her_

**Jacob**: "What… what was wrong that night that bloodsucker was here?"

**Alice**: "It's… it's about Jasper…"

_Shows a quick shot of Jasper being thrown roughly into the same small, dark room as Alice_

**Jacob**: "What about him?"

_Shows a shot of Alice holding Jasper's head in her lap, crying as she runs her hand through his hair soothingly_

**VO Alice**: "You… you wouldn't care…"

_Cuts sharply to a black screen as the sound of a heavy door slamming shut is heard_

**Children chanting**: "Ring around the rosy…"

_Fades into a shot of Alice and Jacob smiling at each other as he shows her a motorcycle before handing her a white flower_

_Cuts to a shot of Alice driving by a playground, looking over at Jasper sitting on a swing as he watches her drive by_

_Cuts to a shot of Alice slowly walking across a parking lot toward Royce King_

**Children chanting**: "Pockets full of posy…"

_Shows a shot of Alice falling off a rock onto the sand at the La Push beach, Jacob dropping down beside her as he screams her name_

_Cuts to a shot of Jasper and Alice standing in her dark kitchen as he leans forward and kisses her passionately_

_Cuts to a shot of Alice sitting against a tree in a snow-covered wood, sobbing_

**VO Alice**: "Are you hurting too? Are you bleeding too?"

**Children chanting**: "Ashes, ashes…"

_Shows a shot of Alice leaning over a hurt Jasper, anxiously whispering words of comfort to him as she kisses his forehead_

_Cuts to a shot of Jasper being thrown at Victoria's feet as Alice tries to reach him but is held back by newborns, tears streaming from her eyes as she screams_

_Cuts to a shot of Alice standing at the edge of a high cliff with the rough ocean far below her, her foot inching over the side_

**Children chanting**: "We all fall down."

_Cuts sharply to a black screen, and a broken sob is heard_

**VO Alice**: "Jasper!"

**Ice Moon**

**Emily**: "But your memories of him will always stay with you."

**Alice**: "They're the scars I have to bear."

**Coming soon! See you guys there!**


End file.
